US reups do-not-travel warning for Russia over ‘suspected pneumonic plague’

The U.S. is refreshing its call for Americans not to travel to Russia in the wake of a suspected case of pneumonic plague in Siberia.

In a post on the social platform X on Tuesday, the State Department said, “The U.S. Embassy is aware of press reports from the Irkutsk region of suspected pneumonic plague resulting in the death of an individual and of associated quarantine measures in, and closures of, hospitals in Irkutsk.”

“We continue to track the situation closely. The U.S. government has limited ability to help U.S. citizens in Russia, especially outside of Moscow,” the department continued. “The State Department’s Level 4 Travel Advisory (Do Not Travel) for Russia remains in place and states U.S. citizens currently in Russia should depart immediately.”

On Monday, President Trump said he was worried about the suspected plague case, saying the U.S. was “looking at it very strongly.”

The State Department also said Monday it was monitoring it.

“I hate to see them having it,” Trump told reporters before departing the White House for Nebraska. “It’s a rough disease. We used to be able to control, but somehow those microbes have gotten stronger and smarter.”

NBC News reported Monday that around 200 people in Siberia were facing medical observation in the wake of a 28-year-old lab worker, possibly exposed to the pneumonic plague, dying, local media reported.

On Sunday, the Russian consumer welfare service said the woman, who worked at an institute combating the plague, died due to “pneumonia of unknown etiology,” NBC News reported. However, a specific cause of death was not given by Russian authorities.