U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that the United States is closely monitoring the case of an employee of a Russian laboratory who died last week after an incident at a research institute studying plague in Siberia, UNN reports, citing The Guardian.
"We are watching this situation very closely," Rubio said Monday before departing for Europe. "I don’t think this is a reason for panic, but it does require close attention and monitoring."
As previously reported, Darya Shipilova, a 28-year-old employee of the plague-control institute in the city of Irkutsk, fell ill directly at her workplace. She died two days later, during the night of October 2, at a regional hospital in the neighboring city of Shelekhov.
The circumstances in which she fell ill remain unclear. Unconfirmed reports appeared in Russian media that Shipilova may have been infected as a result of an incident in the laboratory. Officials have not publicly confirmed this version.
Local media reported that the institute was subsequently placed under quarantine, while staff were forced to sleep on the floor and on chairs. "Everyone has been isolated since Friday—more than 60 people," a relative of one of the employees named Roman told the news outlet "Siberia.Realities."
According to him, relatives were allowed to deliver food through the checkpoint while tests were being conducted inside the building. Similar quarantine restrictions were introduced at several other hospitals in the city and its outskirts.
Referring to information released by the Russian side about the death, Rubio said it appeared that the laboratory worker had become infected, raising concerns that the disease might have spread inside the facility.
"Of course, the links between the United States and Russia are very limited right now," he said. "But, as with anything else, if something like this gets out, it spreads instantly."
Senior officials in Russia heightened public concern by circulating conflicting information. Alexei Tsydenov, head of Buryatia, which borders Irkutsk, initially wrote that Shipilova had died of plague, but later edited the post, saying that she had "possibly" died from the disease.
Rospotrebnadzor said that Shipilova had died of "pneumonia of unknown etiology." The agency insisted that tests had not detected microorganisms associated with her professional activities and described the sanitary and epidemiological situation in the region as stable.
Authorities in the neighboring city of Baikalsk briefly urged residents to refrain from traveling to Shelekhov and nearby settlements after what was described as unofficial information about possible plague infection emerged. The post was later deleted from social media.
"There are no visible changes in everyday life on the streets, but people are concerned and anxious. Local residents are outraged that they are not being told anything," said Olena Trifonova, a journalist with "People of Baikal," a Russian media outlet operating from abroad and specializing in Siberia.
Despite the absence of a confirmed diagnosis, it appears that precautionary measures have been introduced throughout the region. On Monday, the U.S.-funded radio station Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported that several hospitals in Irkutsk had been placed under quarantine. The outlet confirmed that employees of the institution where Shipilova worked—the Irkutsk Research Anti-Plague Institute of Siberia and the Far East—had been kept inside the building since October 2.
Patients at Irkutsk City Clinical Hospital No. 1 and the Ivan-Matryonin Children’s Hospital reported that relatives were not allowed to visit them and that people inside were prohibited from going outside.
Local residents reported on social media that certain precautionary measures had been introduced.
Meanwhile, mandatory mask-wearing was introduced at the Irkutsk Aluminium Plant in Shelekhov. The company’s director, Artem Fominykh, called it a preventive measure, saying: "It is better to be safe than sorry." Over the weekend, a number of mass events were canceled in Irkutsk.
Shipilova’s death prompted intervention by high-ranking federal officials responsible for public health. On Friday, Anna Popova — head of Rospotrebnadzor and the country’s chief sanitary physician — arrived in Irkutsk.
She took part in an emergency meeting of the regional sanitary and anti-epidemic commission devoted to the case, which officials classified as a suspected "particularly dangerous infection."
After meeting with Popova to coordinate further action, Irkutsk Region Governor Igor Kobzev urged residents to remain calm. "All individuals who had contact with the sick woman have been placed under medical observation. As of today, no signs of illness have been detected in them, and the results of laboratory tests are negative," he wrote on Telegram.
Kobzev did not mention in his post the information about the laboratory employee’s death. American politicians expressed concern about the incident, which occurred against the backdrop of the Kremlin’s long-standing and unfounded claims that Ukraine had allegedly been secretly conducting biological weapons research with Washington’s support.
Republican Congressman Don Bacon, a senior member of the House Armed Services Committee, wrote on social media: "I remember hearing from Ukraine’s opponents about their so-called biolabs. These were Russian disinformation operations of the highest order. But in reality, it is Russia that has biolabs."
The publication adds that plague remains endemic in some areas of Siberia and Russia’s Far East, where the pathogen is naturally maintained in populations of wild rodents and their fleas.