Irkutsk, October 8 (Daily Kiran) : The World Health Organization (WHO) has raised concerns regarding the suspicious death of a 28-year-old female researcher at a plague research institute in Siberia. The organization stated that it currently lacks complete information about the incident, making it difficult to assess the associated risks.
The researcher, Darya Shipilova, worked at the Anti-Plague Research Institute in Irkutsk. She succumbed to severe pneumonia on October 2, just two days after falling ill. Initial reports suggested that she may have come into contact with the plague during an incident at the facility, but this claim has not been officially confirmed.
Russian authorities have denied any connection between her death and the plague. The country’s health monitoring agency, Rospotrebnadzor, stated that she died from pneumonia of unknown causes. The agency also reported that extensive investigations found no evidence of pathogens related to the research conducted at the institute.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus commented, “The organization does not yet have the complete picture of the incident, and therefore cannot conduct a full risk assessment. We have urged Russia to share timely, complete, and transparent information to clarify conflicting reports and accurately assess potential public health threats.”
Maria Van Kerkhove, the WHO’s director of health emergencies, added that the organization is still unclear about the specific infection that affected the woman and the true cause of her illness. She emphasized the need for clarity regarding the circumstances of her death if the plague is ruled out as a cause.
According to the UN Office at Geneva, the WHO has requested clarification from Russia regarding the woman’s severe pneumonia, the pathogens involved, public health measures taken, and reports of another employee suffering from pneumonia of unknown origin.
Reports indicate that nearly 200 individuals who had contact with the woman have been identified and are under monitoring. The WHO noted that no dangerous infectious pathogens have been detected among these contacts, and none have shown symptoms of illness.
Previously, the WHO assessed the risk in the Irkutsk region as moderate to low, low across Russia, and very low in the European region, stating that the risk assessment would be updated as new information becomes available.
Meanwhile, Russian officials have asserted that they have provided information about the incident to the WHO in accordance with established procedures. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov dismissed several media reports regarding the case as inaccurate, urging the public to rely on official information from Russian health authorities.
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