Millions face new travel restrictions as fears grow over Russian plague outbreak

Ms Shipilova, a scientist at the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Institute of Siberia and the Far East, was admitted to Shelekhov District Hospital on September 29 and died three days later in the early hours of October 2.

Russian authorities have attributed her death to "pneumonia of unknown aetiology," insisting that extensive testing of her samples revealed no connection to the pathogens she handled professionally.

But the potential outbreak could have wider implications. Dr Andrew Weber, who has spent time in anti-plague labs across Russia, warned that the UK should consider screening passengers entering the country.

"If I were a public health authority in London, I would be monitoring flights and passengers coming from the region and screening them at the airport," he told The Sun.

"If it’s pneumonic plague, which spreads through the air, it could spread pretty quickly."

The international reaction has already been swift and pointed.

Millions could now face new travel restrictions as concerns continue to grow over a suspected plague outbreak in Russia, following the death of a lab worker

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Kyrgyzstan ordered enhanced sanitary surveillance at every border crossing, with its Health Ministry stating: "These preventive measures were prompted by reports of a confirmed case of the plague in the Russian Federation."

Kazakhstan, which shares a 4,750-mile frontier with Russia, has introduced its own preventive measures and is monitoring developments in Irkutsk.

Uzbekistan is similarly acting to prevent the spread of dangerous infections, while Mongolia has placed its border regions with Russia on high alert.

Washington has also weighed in. A White House spokesman confirmed the Trump administration was "aware of the outbreak" and "evaluating possible courses of action."

Meanwhile Marco Rubio confirmed the US are "watching and monitering it closely."

Marco Rubio confirmed the US are 'watching and monitering it closely'

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The US State Department, working alongside the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, urged Russian authorities to "share accurate information quickly and openly."

But the Kremlin remain secretive, with some even accusing Vladimir Putin of covering up the extraordinary outbreak.

Spokesman Dmitry Peskov urged the public and media to follow official statements rather than "rumours or speculation."

Several US representatives have gone further, demanding comprehensive bans on flights from Russia.

More than 60 of Ms Shipilova's colleagues have been quarantined inside the institute since October 2, with a relative of one staff member confirming the lockdown.

"They locked everyone in isolation from Friday. More than 60 people - by Saturday not a single test had come back positive," the relative said. "And they are sleeping there - on the floor, on chairs. There are obviously no beds."

Relatives have been permitted only to deliver food parcels via a checkpoint.

Across the wider Irkutsk region, multiple hospitals have been subjected to strict quarantine protocols lasting three weeks. Restrictions have affected at least five facilities, including a children's hospital and a maternity ward.

"We are under full quarantine. None of our relatives are being allowed in. We are not being allowed out," reported one patient at City Clinical Hospital No. 1.

Close to 200 individuals who had contact with Ms Shipilova have meanwhile been placed under medical observation.

Rospotrebnadzor, the country's health watchdog, has categorically denied any plague outbreak and declared the situation in Irkutsk and Shelekhov "stable."

Yet Alexey Tsydenov, governor of neighbouring Buryatia, initially described Ms Shipilova as "the woman who died from plague" before quietly amending his statement to say she "may have died from plague."

Anna Popova, Russia's chief state sanitary doctor and head of Rospotrebnadzor, flew thousands of miles from Moscow to Irkutsk to attend an emergency meeting convened over a suspected "particularly dangerous infection."

She has not spoken publicly about the case.