US President Donald Trump stated regarding the suspected plague pathogen leakage accident in Russia that he is "monitoring the issue very closely."
President Trump told reporters at the White House yesterday local time, "I just heard about that and we will help Russia as much as we can."
President Trump also said, "The bacteria have become relatively much stronger than before," adding, "This accident is a big problem for Russia."
Earlier, according to US media outlet CNN and others, a 28-year-old female researcher broke a test tube containing the plague pathogen on September 25 at an anti-plague research institute in Irkutsk, Siberia, Russia.
Four days after breaking the vial, on September 29, the woman showed symptoms of severe pneumonia and was hospitalized, before passing away early this month.
Rospotrebnadzor, the Russian national agency responsible for infectious diseases, announced on October 4 that the female researcher died after being diagnosed with "pneumonia of unknown origin."
While Russian authorities are currently conducting investigations to determine the exact type of the leaked pathogen, about 200 people at the hospital where she was hospitalized have reportedly been designated for quarantine and observation.
The European Commission also stated that it has verified related reports and is closely monitoring the situation.
The plague is an acute febrile infectious disease caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis, commonly known as the "Black Death."
It causes sudden symptoms such as fever and chills, and depending on clinical manifestations, it is broadly classified into three forms: bubonic plague, pneumonic plague, and septicemic plague.
Pneumonic plague is one of the three forms caused by the plague bacterium, and unlike other forms of plague transmitted through contact with fleas or animals, it can spread from person to person through microscopic droplets.
While its fatality rate is high, it can be treated effectively with antibiotics, Euronews reported.
Reported by Kim Minjeong | Video by Ahn Jun-hyeok | Graphics by Lee Jeong-ju | Produced by SBS Digital News
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