Russia’s public health watchdog, Rospotrebnadzor, said Thursday that claims another person had fallen ill after contact with an employee of the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Research Institute were false.
The statement follows the death of 28-year-old Darya Shipilova on October 2 after she developed severe pneumonia, triggering extensive health precautions across the Irkutsk region.
Russian authorities maintain that no plague infection has been confirmed and that investigators found no evidence of an accident involving dangerous pathogens at the institute.
“Comprehensive preventive and anti-epidemic measures have been implemented. There are no epidemic risks,” the watchdog said, according to Anadolu.
Officials say nearly 5,000 tests have been conducted without detecting dangerous pathogens, although the precise cause of Shipilova’s fatal illness remains unresolved.
The World Health Organization has requested additional information from Moscow, including clarification of reports involving another suspected infection and the pathogen responsible for the researcher’s death.
The case has attracted international scrutiny after reports that Shipilova may have been exposed to the bacterium responsible for pneumonic plague during an alleged laboratory accident. Russian authorities deny that any such accident occurred.
Despite official assurances, the scale of quarantine measures imposed on laboratory employees, hospital patients and other contacts has raised questions about the authorities’ response.
The Kremlin has dismissed much of the reporting surrounding the incident as misinformation, urging the public to rely on statements from Rospotrebnadzor.
No plague outbreak or secondary transmission has been independently confirmed.
However, the cause of Shipilova’s death remains unexplained, leaving international health authorities seeking further evidence from Moscow.
