US secretary of state Marco Rubio says that the United States is “closely monitoring” reports of pneumonic plague in Eastern Russia that may have led to the death of a lab worker.
According to SkyNews, a worker at Russia’s Irkutsk Anti-Plague Research Institute of Siberia and the Far East died of “pneumonia of unknown etiology” or origin.
According to Newsweek, the deceased worker staffed a facility that handles dangerous pathogens.
Almost 200 people who had been in contact with the researcher are now being observed and the healthcare facility where the researcher was treated had been closed for quarantine, SkyNews reports.
The incident has triggered “a “full range of anti-epidemic measures” in Russia, Newsweek reports.
“We’re watching and monitoring it closely. I don’t think it’s cause for alarm, but it is cause for focus and a cause just to keep an eye on it,” Secretary Rubio told reporters.
Pneumonic plague (Yersinia pestis) is the most severe manifestation of plague, with mortality rates approaching 100% in the absence of treatment.
According to the World Health Organization, the pathogen may be transmitted human-to-human via respiratory particles, with incubation as short as 24 hours. WHO reports that recovery rates are high if detected and treated in time (within 24 hours of onset of symptoms).
