‘They simply let my daughter die’: Mother of Russian scientist Daria Shipilova rejects broken test tube theory behind plague death

The mother of the Russian scientist, who died in a suspected plague outbreak in Siberia, has refuted the test tube theories. Reports have claimed that Daria Shipilova (28) got infected after a test tube carrying the live bacteria broke. Russia has attributed the worker's death to pneumonia of an "undetermined" cause.

Daria's mother, Svetlana Shipilova told Russian outlet Glubina that it is impossible to break a test tube and that she 'knows the truth. Svetlana, who is also a medical professional, said, “I’m having to fend off stupid acquaintances who believed all this – the clever ones didn’t believe it, of course."

“Not even all medical professionals understand it’s impossible to break a test tube like that. Even if you fling it at the wall. Only an amateur could say something like that," she added.


Svetlana said the test tubes are well protected. “Even hypothetically, you simply can’t spill what’s inside or break the tube – they’re that well protected.”

“They simply let my daughter die,” she said.

What we know about the Russian plague so far

It all started last Friday when Russian news outlet People of Baikal reported that 28-year-old Darya Shipilova, an employee of the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Institute, died the previous night from a suspected case of pneumonic plague. She may have contracted the disease from a broken test tube, the outlet reported.

Initially, Alexei Tsydenov, governor of the neighbouring Buryatia region, said in a social media post that a woman in the Irkutsk region had "died of plague", but later added the word "possibly" to the post.

People of Baikal claimed that 200 people who were suspected to have been in contact with Darya were placed under quarantine.

The Irkutsk region governor, Igor Kobzev, said Monday that an inspection by Rospotrebnadzor found she died of pneumonia of "undetermined" origin.

"No micro-organisms linked to the young woman's professional work were found in her biological samples," Kobzev said, adding that no other staff at the institute had sought medical attention since her death.

Rospotrebnadzor said Wednesday that the situation in the Irkutsk region remained "stable", and that nearly 5,000 tests had been conducted, none of which revealed dangerous pathogens.

It also reported "comprehensive preventive and anti-epidemic measures" had been implemented, without saying what the measures were.

Rospotrebnadzor has insisted that there were no "epidemic risks to the populations of Irkutsk and the Irkutsk Region".

Meanwhile, reports of a second case of the disease surfaced earlier this week which the Kremlin vehemently denied and said most of what the media was reporting was "false information".

WHO, EU, US ask for more transparency

The WHO, European Union and United States have all called for Russia to be more transparent about the incident.

US President Donald Trump on Monday said that his country is closely following the events in Russia. Trump also offered "help" to Russia. The next day he said he would call Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to discuss the reports.

WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Wednesday said the organisation "has requested further information to clarify the cause of the severe pneumonia".

What is plague?

Plague is a disease caused by the Yersinia pestis bacterium, the same pathogen that killed millions of people in Europe during the Middle Ages. It can occur in several forms, among them pneumonic plague, which is the most contagious type and can be transmitted by respiratory means. Bubonic plague is transmitted by infected fleas.

All forms can be treated with antibiotics, although can be rapidly fatal if not treated early. Plague is found in all continents except Oceania, and cases have been sporadically reported worldwide. A plague outbreak on the island nation of Madagascar killed over 200 people in 2017.