US monitors possible plague outbreak in Russia, sees no cause for alarm

The United States is monitoring a possible outbreak of pneumonic plague in Russia, though Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Monday the situation is "not a cause for alarm" while acknowledging the disease could spread rapidly. Rubio noted that travel between Russia and the U.S. is very limited, reducing the risk of transmission. He said current information comes from Russian authorities, who report a possibly infected laboratory worker and have imposed quarantines to prevent the disease's spread. The U.S. issued an alert Sunday following the death of a woman in Siberia's Irkutsk region, possibly from the plague. Russian consumer watchdog Rospotrebnadzor has urged calm, while independent outlet Meduza reported the victim was a 28-year-old employee of a plague research institute.