Russia plague fears after death of lab worker at research centre | BBC News

A BBC News report on the death of a 28-year-old lab worker at a plague research centre in Siberia, Russia. The death has raised concerns about the disease spreading, and the WHO and the United States have asked Russia for more information. Russian officials say the cause is still under investigation and that people in contact with the victim tested negative for pneumonic plague. Around 200 people were reportedly placed under observation in Siberia's Irkutsk region after the death. Russia's health watchdog Rospotrebnadzor has described the cause as "pneumonia of an undetermined etiology". Unconfirmed reports about how the woman became ill have not been verified by officials.

• A 28-year-old lab worker died at a Russian plague research centre in Siberia
• The WHO and the United States have requested more information from Russia
• Russian officials say those in contact with the victim tested negative for pneumonic plague
• About 200 people were reportedly placed under observation in Irkutsk region

The death of a worker at a Russian plague research centre in Siberia has raised concerns that the deadly disease could spread. The World Health Organisation and the United States have both asked Russia for more information on the circumstances surrounding the incident. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has urged Russia to release more information. "I think it's incumbent upon Russia to obviously share more information with the world," Rubio told reporters. "We're watching it very closely, hour by hour." The incident has sparked a flurry of speculation about the circumstances in which the 28-year-old woman died. Russian officials have said they are still investigating the cause of the death but those who came into contact with the victim all tested negative to pneumonic plague. Reports first emerged on Friday of almost 200 people being placed under observation in Siberia's Irkutsk region following the death. The lab worker, named in Russian media as Darya Shipilova, had reportedly fallen ill a couple of days earlier. Unconfirmed reports suggested that she had become ill after breaking a test tube containing the pathogen or following a field trip to a region where plague occurs naturally among wild rodents. But Russian officials have played down those reports. The country's health watchdog Rospotrebnadzor said the woman had died of "pneumonia of an undetermined etiology". Jane Hill presents BBC News at Ten reporting by Steve Rosenberg. Subscribe to our channel here: https://bbc.in/bbcnews For the latest news download the BBC News app or visit BBC.com/news #BBCNews