About 200 people have been quarantined after the death of 28-year-old lab technician Darya Shipilova, who died on the night of October 2 in a hospital in Shelekhov, a city near Irkutsk. She worked at the Irkutsk Plague Institute.
The case has caused alarm in Irkutsk and Shelekhov, but Russian authorities have not officially used the word “plague“. According to “Medusa“ reports of a possible plague were removed by media outlets controlled by the authorities.
People in protective suits and gas masks
Olga Mutovina, co-founder of the Irkutsk media outlet “People of Baikal“, talks about the actions in both cities. According to her, people in protective suits were spotted, posing as employees who were treating premises for cockroaches.
“People with gas masks arrived in three cars“ is the phrase used in the title of the “Medusa“ video material dedicated to what is happening in the region.
The material also claims that Shipilova's neighbors who were in contact with her were not isolated. Some of the people quarantined were accompanied by Federal Security Service officers.
No official confirmation of plague
The published information describes the death of an employee of an anti-plague institute, the quarantine of about 200 contact persons and the increased presence of protective teams, but does not contain official confirmation from the Russian authorities of an outbreak of plague.
The case is developing against the backdrop of limited public information about the cause of death and the actions of the services in Irkutsk and Shelekhov.
Sources: meduza.io