The Irkutsk Anti-Plague Institute, whose 28-year-old employee Daria Shipilova died in early October, received warnings about violations of biosafety requirements for more than ten years. Supervisory authorities pointed to an incomplete emergency response plan, weak management preparedness, and a lack of means for decontaminating premises and equipment.
According to the American newspaper The Wall Street Journal, as retold by “Agentstvo”, the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Institute received warnings about violations of biosafety requirements for more than ten years. In 2015, the institution was pointed out for lacking an automatic fire alarm in some premises, and in 2019 it failed to prepare the mandatory safety documents for facilities working with biologically hazardous materials.
In June 2026, the Ministry of Emergency Situations said that the institute had not provided measures for decontaminating buildings and equipment in the event of an accident. The agency also noted that the facility had no stocks of disinfecting and degassing substances. In September 2026, the Ministry of Emergency Situations warned that the institution’s civil defense plan was outdated, and the employee responsible for this area had not received additional training.
Despite these remarks, the institute continued to operate. In the summer of 2026, its employees took part in joint Russian-Chinese exercises to counter infectious threats in Khabarovsk.
The institute’s 28-year-old employee Daria Shipilova died on the night of October 1 to 2, and Rospotrebnadzor named pneumonia of unspecified etiology as the official cause of death. The World Health Organization (WHO) repeatedly contacted the Russian authorities for additional information. Russia provided data on the examination of contacts and the results of inspections of the institute, but never identified the pathogen, and the WHO said it could not completely rule out laboratory infection.
