Suspected plague case highlights Russia’s inherited Soviet-era culture of secrecy
The suspicious death last week of a worker at a research lab in Siberia that has fueled global concerns about suspected pneumonic plague is just the latest example of how Russia manages the official narrative. The Kremlin has long maintained a culture of secrecy when it comes to controlling public information, especially involving accidents – from industrial disasters to health emergencies, as…
Russia has confirmed no health concerns or dangerous micro-organisms following contact tracing of a woman who reportedly died of plague, according to the governor of Irkutsk region, Igor Kobzev. The woman, a 28-year-old employee at a plague research institute in Siberia, died of community-acquired pneumonia, not plague, the governor stated on Russia's state-backed social platform Max.
Medical monitoring of all contacts has concluded with no signs of health issues related to infectious diseases, as confirmed by Kobzev. News outlet People of Baikal reported the incident, alleging the woman had died from plague, possibly after contracting it from a broken test tube. The US, EU, and WHO voiced concerns, urging Russia to be transparent about the situation.
Dozens were placed in quarantine due to fears of an outbreak. Kobzev mentioned that preventive measures have been fully implemented in the region, noting that the sanitary-epidemiological situation in Irkutsk and Shelekhov is stable.
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