Stories
WHO Assesses Siberia Plague Risk as Low Following Lab Worker Death
- •The World Health Organization states that the risk of a wider plague outbreak in Siberia remains low following the death of 28-year-old laboratory worker Darya Shipilova on October 2.
- •Russian health authorities reported that Shipilova died from pneumonia of unknown cause and did not test positive for plague, despite initial conflicting reports from regional officials.
- •Approximately 200 people who had contact with Shipilova, including about 60 staff members at the anti-plague research institute, were placed under strict medical observation as a precaution.
- •Subsequent tests on monitored contacts identified other respiratory infections such as COVID-19 and rhinovirus, with no plague infections detected.
- •WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus urged Russia to share timely and transparent information to accurately assess any potential public health risks.
Key Questions Answered
Darya Shipilova, a 28-year-old laboratory worker in Russia's Irkutsk region, died on October 2 after developing severe pneumonia. While Russian health authorities stated she did not test positive for plague and died from pneumonia of unknown cause, some tests on monitored contacts instead identified respiratory infections including COVID-19 and rhinovirus.
Around 200 people who may have had contact with Shipilova, including about 60 staff members confined at the anti-plague research institute, were placed under strict quarantine and medical observation as a precautionary measure. Similar restrictions and visiting bans were applied in several neighboring hospitals while doctors worked to establish whether transmission had occurred.
The WHO's initial risk assessment categorized the risk as moderate to low for Irkutsk, low for the rest of Russia, and very low for the WHO European region. WHO spokesperson Christian Lindmeier noted that all identified contacts were being monitored and none had shown symptoms of illness to date.
