Story perspectives
WHO Opens Investigation After Lab-Associated Plague Fears in Irkutsk
By Drooid · · How we work
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Story summary
- Russia quarantined 200 contacts after 28-year-old lab worker Darya Shipilova died at Irkutsk Anti-Plague Research Institute on October 2.
- Irkutsk authorities closed five hospitals, denied plague, and said Shipilova’s death resulted from pneumonia of unknown origin.
- Former CDC director Robert Redfield questioned Moscow’s account and suggested protocols might indicate an antibiotic-resistant or genetically modified plague strain.
- World Health Organization opened an investigation, stating a laboratory-associated exposure cannot be excluded.
