Plague outbreak in Russia's Irkutsk region: hospitals quarantined, mandatory mask-wearing introduced in factories At least four municipal hospitals (Nos. 1, 3, and 10, plus a children's hospital) and a local maternity ward in Irkutsk have been placed under quarantine. Medical staff are speaking openly about the plague; however, Russian authorities stated today that no emergency incident had occurred at the anti-plague institute—where a test tube had reportedly broken. Test results have not confirmed an infection in the case of the deceased woman. ➡️ Major events in the city have been cancelled. ➡️ So far, 197 people who had contact with the woman—who died of pneumonia—have been identified; 189 of them have been hospitalized. ➡️ According to media reports, the ambulances transporting these individuals are being escorted by FSB units. ➡️ A temporary mask mandate has been introduced at the Irkutsk aluminum plant in Shelekhov as a "preventive measure." ➡️ Pneumonic plague is the most severe, rapid-onset, and dangerous form of the disease. Unlike common (bubonic) plague, which is transmitted via flea bites, pneumonic plague spreads from person to person through droplet infection—via coughing, sneezing, or even normal conversation. The incubation period is only 1 to 3 days (sometimes just a few hours). The disease begins abruptly with high fever, severe headache, bloody sputum, shortness of breath, and the rapid development of severe pneumonia. Without immediate antibiotic treatment (within the first 24 hours of symptom onset), the mortality rate is nearly 100%.