# Plague in Russia **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Tags:** trump\ **Created:** [October 6, 2026, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plague-in-russia/1033622 "2026-10-06T16:58:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Frazzled](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frazzled/32/3368_2.png) [@Frazzled](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frazzled)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2026, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plague-in-russia/1033622/1 "2026-10-06T16:58:10Z")
I just learned yesterday that there’s an “Anti-Plague Research Facility” in Siberia. A young worker dropped a vial containing Pneumonic Plague and died from it a few days later. I’m not a doctor, but my understanding is that Pneumonic Plague is more deadly than its famous counterpart, Bubonic Plague, and has a nearly 100% fatality rate unless treated with antibiotics almost immediately. Over 100 people were quarantined and a second person has now died. The Kremlin, of course, has been very open and forthcoming with information. Or wait, never mind, they’re completely downplaying the situation. [Russian media claims a second victim has died from ‘plague outbreak’ - World News - News - Daily Express US](https://www.the-express.com/news/world-news/217422/russian-media-claims-second-victim) Stating the obvious - should this facility actually be called the “Plague Research Facility” in Siberia"? Putin is evil. Pneumonic Plague is already lethal, imagine if it was weaponized? He’s at war with Ukraine and has already hinted that nukes aren’t off the table. Covid proved how difficult it is to contain a deadly disease and how quickly it can spread. Frankly, Russia’s history of sweeping enormous problems under the rug doesn’t give me much faith in them handling this one. To add to the dread, that article links to a second article that Trump recently tried to access nuclear codes while dealing with a situation in Iran. A general in the room flat out told him “NO!” which pissed him off severely. Supposedly staff kept him away from the situation room during a recent hostage rescue attempt because of his volatility. The article is all speculation, but if there’s even a grain of truth (and given Trumps temperament I believe there is) then we have a mad man on the loose. [General Dan Caine’s brutal 1-word response to Trump over nuclear codes - Politics - News - Daily Express US](https://www.the-express.com/news/politics/205398/general-dan-caine-brutal-1-word-response-trump-nuclear-codes-blow-up) Put these 2 articles together - Putin is probably making a biological weapon while losing a war in Ukraine. Trump is losing self-control while losing a war in Iran. Trump idolizes Putin. Trump has a very poor record managing pandemics and we now have RFK Jr in charge of Health and Human Services. There’s that creeping dread feeling again … ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2026, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plague-in-russia/1033622/2 "2026-10-06T16:59:58Z")
Related, but non-Pit thread: > [@Possible beginning of a new pandemic?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/possible-beginning-of-a-new-pandemic/1033599): > > A Russian employee of an infectious disease research center in Siberia died of a pneumonia of supposedly unknown origin (or perhaps pneumonic plague). The center is the Irkutsk Research Anti-Plague Institute of Siberia. Dozens of people are in isolation as a result. [Gift link](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/10/05/world/europe/russia-plague-siberia.html?unlocked_article_code=1.GVE.WhUE.1Gg-gBBxkUu-&smid=url-share) to a New York Times article on the story while [here](https://www.cnn.com/2026/10/04/europe/russia-laboratory-plague-accident-intl) is the story from CNN. Maybe it’s nothing but I’ve seen movies that start with stories like this and end very badly. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2026, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plague-in-russia/1033622/3 "2026-10-06T17:03:29Z")
> [@Frazzled](#): > > There’s that creeping dread feeling again … Look on the bright side… all our troubles will be over soon. ---
**Author:** ![Frazzled](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frazzled/32/3368_2.png) [@Frazzled](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frazzled)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2026, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plague-in-russia/1033622/4 "2026-10-06T17:06:45Z")
Thanks, I was wondering if there’d be another thread. I wanted to cuss Trump though. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2026, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plague-in-russia/1033622/5 "2026-10-06T17:11:38Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > > [@Frazzled](#): > > > > There’s that creeping dread feeling again … > > Look on the bright side… all our troubles will be over soon. [We Will All Go Together When We Go.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=frAEmhqdLFs) ---
**Author:** ![Thumper668](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thumper668/32/20803_2.png) [@Thumper668](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thumper668)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2026, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plague-in-russia/1033622/6 "2026-10-06T17:12:15Z")
> [@Frazzled](#): > > I just learned yesterday that there’s an “Anti-Plague Research Facility” in Siberia. Soviet efforts in biological warfare have been on the record for decades, even after the 1972 treaty. Yeltsin was supposed to have abolished it, but I think that is naive. When I worked for a biologic research institute in the late 90s there were 2 known samples of live pneumonic plague preserved in laboratories. One was in the Russia. The other was in the US. I wonder why. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2026, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plague-in-russia/1033622/7 "2026-10-06T17:19:38Z")
Or the alternative… Stop looking at your phone, we all die alone. (Funnier when internal voice has a Russian accent.) ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2026, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plague-in-russia/1033622/8 "2026-10-06T17:23:33Z")
The last time there was a deadly pandemic, it was the American president who urged the stopping of the counting of the number of cases. So between Putin’s reaction and a familiarity with the USA’s guy, this is potentially really bad. If any of the reporting out of Russia can be believed in any way. ---
**Author:** ![Frazzled](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frazzled/32/3368_2.png) [@Frazzled](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frazzled)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2026, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plague-in-russia/1033622/9 "2026-10-06T17:26:56Z")
> [@bobot](#): > > If any of the reporting out of Russia can be believed in any way. Based on Trump’s past performance we can’t believe anything that comes out of either country. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2026, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plague-in-russia/1033622/10 "2026-10-06T17:38:58Z")
> [@Frazzled](#): > > A young worker dropped a vial containing Pneumonic Plague and died from it a few days later. I’m pretty skeptical of this claim being correct. Even if we grant that Russian authorities are callous about value of life in general, I very much doubt that this individual and her colleagues would casually shrug off an incident like this and all go home that evening to their families taking no specific steps to quarantine themselves and the lab. ---
**Author:** ![Frazzled](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frazzled/32/3368_2.png) [@Frazzled](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frazzled)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2026, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plague-in-russia/1033622/11 "2026-10-06T17:49:13Z")
The first I heard of this was a YouTube video last night from David Pakman. I can’t look for it now, but my memory is that they shut down the lab immediately and quarantined over 100 employees. Of course, information is fluid right now. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2026, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plague-in-russia/1033622/12 "2026-10-06T20:52:40Z")
> [@Frazzled](#): > > Stating the obvious - should this facility actually be called the “Plague Research Facility” in Siberia"? Putin is evil. My guess is that it’s both. There is a real value in keeping your citizens from dying; if they all die, you have nobody to oppress anymore. Evil does not always mean stupid. But yeah, I don’t doubt that they’re also trying to develop weapons too. That’s the problem with biological warfare, and the reason why it’s outlawed and not just because it’s morally bad; there is no effective way to protect your own people from it. It would be like building a bomb that blows up the whole planet; it is of no use to anyone because you’re just killing yourself with it. Instead of being a tyrant, you’re a suicide bomber, and those are very different mindsets. That being said, do I think Putin is enough of an egomaniac to think that he’s the one who can figure out how to develop a weapon like that and have it hurt enough of his enemies that he could weather _some_ deaths from his own people? Yes, I do. So I wouldn’t be shocked to find that they have some facility experimenting with stuff, even if they aren’t actually deploying anything due to the obvious potential for self-destruction. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2026, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plague-in-russia/1033622/13 "2026-10-07T00:38:01Z")
Good thing this Administration is cracking down on gain of function research, otherwise we’d be better equipped to defend ourselves against weaponized pathogens. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2026, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plague-in-russia/1033622/14 "2026-10-07T03:33:22Z")
Supposedly even if you weaponize it, pneumonic plague is harder to transmit since the heavier bacteria fall to the floor faster when you exhale them vs viruses. Also there isn’t a period of asymptomatic spread before symptoms start. My understanding is that by the time there are enough bacteria to make you contagious, you have symptoms and probably aren’t walking around in public. But who knows. The fact that Trump, Putin and Xi are among the most powerful leaders in the world really is a shitshow. I hope the version that got released wasn’t part of gain of function research or a bioweapons program. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2026, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plague-in-russia/1033622/15 "2026-10-07T04:10:37Z")
This current book, which I have read, has pneumonic plague and biological warfare on the minds of interested people, more so than usual. That the officials in the Irkutsk area saw fit to tell the world that SOMETHING happened? I’m not sure if that’s a good or a bad thing. > **[Biological War book by Annie Jacobsen](https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/biological-war-a-scenario/57326762/item/87209140/?mkwid=%7Cdc&pcrid=77378313662347&pkw=&pmt=be&slid=&product=87209140&plc=&pgrid=1238050402825500&ptaid=pla-4580977789773286&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Shopping%20-%20Everything%20Else&utm_term=&utm_content=%7Cdc%7Cpcrid%7C77378313662347%7Cpkw%7C%7Cpmt%7Cbe%7Cproduct%7C87209140%7Cslid%7C%7Cpgrid%7C1238050402825500%7Cptaid%7Cpla-4580977789773286%7C&msclkid=9082c59e5d5418073269af5b98884706#idiq=87209140&edition=74605293)** > > Buy a cheap copy of Biological War book by Annie Jacobsen. Instant New York Times Bestseller New York Times Editors ChoiceOne of People's 15 Most Anticipated Books of SummerThe Next Big Idea Club's July 2026 Must-Read... Free Shipping on all orders... ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2026, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plague-in-russia/1033622/16 "2026-10-07T04:29:47Z")
Yeah, that’s the worry. If or when Russians admit something has gone bad, that means it’s gone really bad _and_ it has gone beyond the point of being able to suppress. ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2026, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plague-in-russia/1033622/17 "2026-10-07T12:43:30Z")
I predict we’ll hear from Trump soon, and he’ll say that he has spoken to Putin, and that Putin assured him that there is nothing to see here, and that Trump sees no reason to doubt the integrity of a man so admirable as Putin. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2026, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plague-in-russia/1033622/18 "2026-10-07T14:10:24Z")
Someone needs to remind Putin, Trump had COVID. Just because you style yourself a omnipotent god doesn’t mean you are one. ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2026, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plague-in-russia/1033622/19 "2026-10-07T14:19:05Z")
Look at the bright side. Even if it kills every living thing in and around the facility, it will be isolated in Siberia with a Russian winter soon to arrive. It even may voluntarily return to containment to avoid freezing to death. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2026, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plague-in-russia/1033622/20 "2026-10-07T18:25:54Z")
Or drink itself to death on cheap vodka when it realizes where it is. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plague-in-russia/1033622.md?page=2)