YERSINIA PESTIS MONITOR

Rospotrebnadzor says no plague cases were detected among contacts and no infectious disease was reported among institute staff in the past 10 days. Extensive testing found no microorganisms linked to the worker's job. Contacts: 2 COVID-19 and 2 rhinovirus cases; none showed signs of infectious disease.

WHO in Geneva says Russia told it there were no plague cases in the city of Irkutsk. Reuters could not immediately establish whether that rules out plague in the lab worker's case.

Shelekhov deputy head Elena Sofyina says the "dangerous diagnosis" has not been confirmed and about 60% of those quarantined as a precaution have been released. Residents say life has barely been disrupted; the local hospital briefly paused diagnostic tests and has resumed.

Rospotrebnadzor's Irkutsk office calls a message circulating online about strict restrictions in the region false and says contact monitoring is nearing completion. It says no accidents were detected at the institute.

Secretary of State Rubio says it is incumbent on Russia to share more information and that the State Department is tracking the case "hour by hour". He declined to speculate on the cause, saying the information so far is limited.

President Trump offers US help and calls the situation a "big problem for Russia". Kremlin spokesman Peskov welcomes the offer without saying whether Moscow will accept, and refers all questions to Rospotrebnadzor.

Irkutsk governor Igor Kobzev says the cause of death was pneumonia of unknown etiology and the epidemiological situation is stable. Family members in quarantine could be discharged next week.

Rospotrebnadzor: daily tests on contacts found 2 COVID-19 and 2 rhinovirus cases, no other infections. The institute commission found no emergency or security breach.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio: "not cause for alarm, but cause for focus." The State Department and CDC are monitoring and urge Russia to share accurate information quickly.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov tells the public to rely on Rospotrebnadzor statements, not rumours. Local officials had briefly posted then deleted a warning not to visit Shelekhov.

More than 60 institute staff are reportedly isolated on site and quarantine has been reported at two Irkutsk hospitals and a maternity hospital. Independent outlet Lyudi Baikala reports a test tube with plague bacteria broke on Sep 25. Not confirmed by Russian authorities.

About 189 contacts were hospitalized, per The Moscow Times. Axios reports five hospitals, including a children's and a maternity hospital, remain under quarantine, while The Moscow Times says local media describe hospitals running on standard schedules apart from localized precautions. Reports conflict. No person-to-person spread has been reported.

The Irkutsk Aluminium Plant in nearby Shelekhov introduces a mask mandate as a precaution. Local authorities also asked residents not to travel to Shelekhov, then deleted the message.

First reports: nearly 200 people under medical observation after an Irkutsk Anti-Plague Institute worker died. Buryatia governor Alexey Tsydenov first said plague, then added "possibly".

WHO Weekly Epidemiological Record: 2,646 confirmed plague cases, 3,847 suspected and 423 deaths for 2019–2025. CFR 11% among suspected cases.

Democratic Republic of the Congo: 1,893 confirmed, 1,893 suspected, 101 deaths. With Madagascar, 97.7% of confirmed cases.

Madagascar: 693 confirmed, 1,482 suspected, 307 deaths. Endemic, season September–April.

Kenya: 22 confirmed, 375 suspected, 0 deaths in the country table.

China: 19 confirmed cases, mainly Inner Mongolia, Tibet and Gansu. Mongolia: 17 confirmed cases. Suspected cases and deaths are not in the country table.

Uganda: 2 confirmed, 2 suspected, 1 death, reported only in 2019.