In the Irkutsk Region, tensions have flared over suspicions of an outbreak of a dangerous infection — the plague. The spotlight has fallen on the small town of Shelekhov, where, according to unofficial sources, a young woman may have died from the disease.
Events began to unfold when the Baikalsk local authority published a message on its Telegram channel urging residents to refrain from travelling to Shelekhov. The post referred to an alleged case of the plague. However, two hours later, the post was deleted. The independent publication ‘People of Lake Baikal’ noted that the same had happened to reports on the federal channel REN-TV, which also disappeared from the internet.
The situation became even more confusing when Igor Kobzev, Governor of the Irkutsk Region, mentioned a “particularly dangerous infection” only in passing on his Telegram channel, whilst completely ignoring questions about the plague in the comments.
Maksim Modin, the mayor of the Shelekhov District, also added to the intrigue by promising to clarify the situation, but instead simply asked people not to spread rumours.
Against this backdrop, a rush to buy antibiotics began in pharmacies across Irkutsk and Shelekhov. Residents were keen to stock up on medicines in case the rumours proved true.
News of the death of a young woman, Daria Shipilova, a 28-year-old laboratory assistant at the Irkutsk Research Institute for Plague Control, added fuel to the fire. According to ‘People of Lake Baikal’, she had come into contact with the pathogen. This caused panic amongst local residents, and around 200 people who had been in contact with her were placed in quarantine.
The pneumonic form of plague in question is a dangerous disease transmitted via airborne droplets. The last recorded case of plague in Russia was in 2016 in the Altai Republic, when a 10-year-old child fell ill.
At present, there have been no official comments from the authorities regarding the incident, which is leaving the public with many questions and causing widespread concern.