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White House 'assessing options' as 'Black Death plague' outbreak in Russia sees hundreds placed in quarantine hospitals
The White House is "assessing options" as hundreds of people are placed in quarantine hospitals in Russia amid a suspected "Black Death plague" in Russia.
As previously reported, Darya Shipilova, 28, was reportedly working at the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Institute in Siberia and is said to have told medical staff that she had accidentally broken a test tube containing live bacteria.
She later became unwell while on a field expedition with colleagues in Buryatia, close to Russia's eastern border with Mongolia.
She was rushed to the hospital on September 29 and placed on a ventilator.
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Tragically, Shipilova died two days later, and now around 200 people who came into contact with her are being monitored out of fear of an outbreak.
Three hospitals in the area have been put under secure measures, and a mask mandate has been put in place.
Irkutsk Governor Igor Kobzev revealed that those being monitored had shown no signs of illness and had tested negative for the disease.
The pneumonic plague is one of three main forms of plague caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis.
It affects the lungs and can spread when a person inhales infected respiratory droplets from another person.
Symptoms can include fever, shortness of breath, and coughing up blood, which begin to show between three and seven days after contact.
The disease can be fatal if left untreated, but antibiotics are effective when given quickly.
The different forms of plague
Septicaemic plague occurs when the infection enters the bloodstream, often after a flea bite or contact with an infected animal.
Symptoms can include internal bleeding and tissue death from necrosis.
Bubonic plague is also caused by Yersinia pestis and is transmitted through infected fleas.
It can cause fever, chills, and painful swelling of the lymph nodes, known as buboes.
Bubonic plague is the form most closely associated with the Black Death, the historic pandemic that killed millions of people across Europe.
Questions raised over reported test tube accident
There have been claims that Russian officials are not disclosing the full circumstances surrounding the 28-year-old's death.
Reports have suggested that drugs used to treat the diseases are running low in the region, with worried residents reportedly seeking supplies from pharmacies and medical facilities.
Mikhail Favorov, a senior Russian epidemiologist, questioned the "broken test tube" explanation.
"It's laughable. Someone working at the Anti-Plague Institute in Irkutsk wears a protective anti-plague suit," he said. "If you break a test tube, the likelihood of infection is actually very low. In short, it doesn't matter to the general public – they'll believe the 'broken test tube' story."
He added: "It's absolutely hair-raising. We will not be told what really happened."
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White House says it is monitoring the situation
A Trump administration official told Axios on Sunday that the administration is "aware, monitoring the outbreak, and assessing options."
No further details were given about what the options could involve.