WHO investigates reports of a second plague death in Siberia as Russia blasts media coverage
From the Newshound archive · first published 7 October 2026.
Darya Shipilova, 28, whose death on October 2 after reportedly breaking a test tube of pneumonic plague bacteria sparked fears of an outbreak, was treated by doctors as a severe Covid case until it was too late for…Yersinia pestis, the bacterium behind pneumonic plague, as fears grow that the strain involved in the Irkutsk outbreak may be antibiotic-resistant, according to a former Trump arms control envoy.
A second person has reportedly died of severe pulmonary distress at an Irkutsk regional medical facility, with the WHO pressing Moscow for full transparency after lab technician Darya Shipilova, 28, died on 2 October following exposure to a pathogen at the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Research Institute.
Russia's health watchdog insists no plague cases have been detected among the nearly 200 contacts placed under medical observation, with around 60% now released.
Senior Russian epidemiologist Mikhail Favorov cast doubt on the official 'broken test tube' account, saying 'it's absolutely hair-raising — we will not be told what really happened.'
The US Embassy has urged American citizens in Russia to depart immediately, advising those who visited Irkutsk to monitor their health for 14 days.
