Category: Business

After the trauma of the Coronavirus pandemic back in 2019, many fear the worst when they hear about a potential outbreak.

Darya Shipilova, an employee at the Anti-Plague Research Institute in Shelekhov, died recently after she was exposed to plague bacteria, having broken a test tube in the lab where she worked.

Although her cause of death has not yet been 100 per cent confirmed, the ‘live bacteria’ inside the test tube has got a lot of people concerned, especially considering the severe pneumonia of an ‘unknown origin’ which she was suffering from in hospital before she passed away at the end of September.

The word quarantine is enough to strike fear into our hearts and we would be right to be worried if the outbreak was indeed ‘pneumonic plague‘, as several outlets are reporting this week.

The US are said to be aware of the situation but considering the survival rate is near zero without treatment, it could cause devastation if it does turn into a full-blown pandemic, with emergency antibiotics often the only hope of preventing death.

Dr Simon Clarke, associate professor in cellular microbiology in the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Reading, has allayed fears somewhat with his expert commentary, where he highlights exactly how this potential outbreak would be very different to what we all saw seven years ago.

He said: “Reports from Russia have inevitably drawn comparisons with Covid-19, but it is important to remember that pneumonic plague is a very different disease. It is caused by bacteria, Yersinia pestis, famous for causing the Black Death, that remains with us today mostly in animals across parts of Asia, Africa and the Americas.

“Pneumonic plague is particularly serious because it means the infection has reached the lungs and is nearly always fatal if not treated promptly. Unlike the bubonic plague which enters the body via infected flea bites, pneumonic plague can spread between people through respiratory droplets during close contact.

“Unlike many viral respiratory diseases, plague is caused by bacteria and is generally treatable with antibiotics if identified quickly.”

While both illnesses can be passed through respiratory droplets and close contact, Covid did not originate from bacterium and couldn’t be treated with antibiotics in the same way.

Russia has also acted quickly by putting around 200 different people into quarantine after they came into close contact with Shipilova, but so far the public health service has only conceded that she died of ‘pneumonia of undetermined origin’.

Despite the White House also describing it as an ‘outbreak’ in its official statement, Dr Clarke is less convinced and suggests that ‘an awful lot must have gone wrong for a lab worker to be infected by a broken test tube’.

He added: “Having worked in high-containment laboratories, I know that handling dangerous pathogens involves multiple layers of protection, strict procedures, safety cabinets, airflow systems and careful procedures carried out by well-trained staff. Lab-acquired infections are rare events, and a broken tube would not automatically lead to exposure or infection. We also don’t tend to use test tubes very much.

“Until more details emerge, it is difficult to assess whether this represents an isolated case, an occupational exposure, or evidence of wider transmission.

“Transparency, rapid diagnosis and effective contact tracing would be the most important factors in managing an outbreak.”

Hundreds have been placed into quarantine after a young lab worker died from an unknown illness.

Darya Shipilova, an employee at the Anti-Plague Research Institute in Shelekhov, was exposed to plague bacteria after she ‘accidentally broke a test tube’ the Kyiv Independent reported.

Reports suggested she was collecting samples in the laboratory, which contained the pathogen, when the incident occurred.

Local media has reported how Shipilova told medical staff she had accidentally broken a test tube ‘holding live bacteria.’

She was taken to hospital on 29 September with severe pneumonia of ‘unknown origin’. She was put on a ventilator but was later confirmed dead.

Authorities are now implementing a ‘comprehensive set of anti-epidemic measures,’ according to Maxim Modin, the mayor of the Shelekhovsky district in eastern Russia.

Two hundred people she came into contact with are now being closely monitored.

The inpatient facility at the hospital where Shipilova was treated has since been placed under quarantine, as well as other hospitals in the region, according to local reports.

Irkutsk Governor Igor Kobzev issued a message on Telegram where he urged residents to remain calm. He confirmed that an anti-epidemic commission had met to address a ‘suspected case of a particularly dangerous infection’.

Russia however have not confirmed any sort of ‘outbreak’, with the public health service conceding that the lab technician died of ‘pneumonia of undetermined origin’.

According to Rospotrebnadzor, the Russian agency that handles infectious disease, ‘no microorganisms associated with the employee’s professional duties were detected in samples taken from the patient’.

However the Moscow Times have reported that 189 people suspected of having the plague have been identified and hospitalised, as they remain under close watch.

The White House has also issued a statement, which read: “The Trump administration is aware of the outbreak, is monitoring it, and is evaluating options.”

What are the signs and how does it spread?

The pneumonic plague causes a severe lung infection, along with fever, shortness of breath and can result in coughing up blood.

It is caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis and results in a disease which is almost always fatal if left untreated.

Although antibiotics can reduce this rate and it is treatable providing antibiotics are administered within 24 hours of the onset of symptoms, according to the World Health Organisation.

It is highly contagious, and unlike the more common bubonic plague, which is transmitted via flea bites, it can spread from person to person through respiratory droplets.

These can be passed on through coughing or sneezing.

Imagine you’re sitting at home, sipping the perfect cuppa, and suddenly the world stops spinning – what do you think would happen next?

Well, according to a simulation that has been posted online for all to see, it’s not a great process.

While there isn’t currently any known mechanism that could stop Earth from spinning, that doesn’t mean an unknown object could do that very thing in the future.

And if it does happen, then there will be quite a few things that happen to everyone living on Earth – and none of them are pleasant.

According to Lunar Cheeseee on TikTok, the world wouldn’t just stop to a firm halt immediately.

First, it would begin to slow from its current speed of 1037 miles per hour east on the equator.

Almost immediately, cracks would begin to form on the pavement around you, and your ability to stand upright without falling would become nearly impossible as small objects fly past.

Once speeds get down to 1028, that’s when the terror truly begins.

Per the simulation, which shows people on a street surrounded by businesses, the buildings and street signs start to peel away and fly east – and so do the people.

At 800 miles per hour, structures crumble and slide along the ground as the world’s population is propelled away, travelling at incredible speeds while the Earth remains rooted to the spot.

700 miles an hour and skyscrapers are next to fall, and there’s practically no person visible as the heavier objects are ripped from their spot on the world.

At between 300 and 200 miles, the simulation claims that the ‘wind is now faster than sound’ and all you can see is debris whipping past before finally, cargo ships and oceans crash past.

You might be wondering why everything keeps moving when the Earth itself stops.

That’s because, like when you brake suddenly in a car, the force of your momentum continues to propel you. Which is why you need a seat belt to hold you back.

However, if you move toward the poles, you will feel the impact of the force less and less because each point is a at higher latitude.

For example, in New York City, the surface speed is around 790 miles per hour, and at the poles, the Earth’s rotation is essentially zero, because they are at the planet’s axis of rotation.

So, in theory, if you were situated at either pole, you might not notice what’s going on until the oceans are crashing through.

Because of this, people online have commented under the simulation video that being at the poles could bring a person a chance of survival.

However, that’s not to say the poles would remain unscathed considering everything on Earth is propelling itself East. That’s a lot of speed, and weight, which could do something like shift tectonic plates, and more.

“So much water would be displaced onto the continents and back that you’d definitely experience a tsunami,” said one person.

“And this is the ‘gradual’ stop. Imagine just suddenly stopping down to 0. Every single object is now a ballistic missile,” said another.

A man whose stomach ache turned out to be a rare cancer has tragically died aged 23 following a gruelling battle.

Nickodemus Dacres was diagnosed with stage four medullary renal cell carcinoma (RMC) last year.

RMC is one of the rarest and most aggressive forms of kidney cancer which predominantly affects adolescents and young adults with sickle cell trait or disease.

The symptoms started when Dacres, from Croydon in south London, began suffering with stomach pain at work. However he then started to urinate blood.

The stomach ache was a clear sign he had RMC and he was diagnosed in February of last year.

He had been in and out of hospital ever since with mum Donna Dacres, 59, who remained at his side until he tragically passed away on September 26.

“He was such a bubbly young man”

Donna explained how the chemotherapy he had been undergoing, which had left her feeling optimistic, ended up causing liver failure.

She said: “He was such a bubbly young man. He had a heart of gold and he loved to give.

“As a mum, nothing prepares you for watching your child suffer knowing there is so little you can do to take the pain away.”

Donna said that she was told this cancer is only shared by nine other people in the UK. According to the Ricky Casey Trust, the true prevalence of RMC around the world is not known.

Nickodemus started getting extreme stomach pain while on shift in July 2024 but did not think much of it.

However, when he went to the bathroom and tried to urinate, blood came out instead, and he was rushed to A&E by a colleague.

For months he went through tests until eventually a scan uncovered a small tumour in his right kidney.

The lump continued growing along with the pain, and in December 2024 surgeons decided to remove the kidney and several lymph nodes to do some tests.

But in February, doctors delivered the devastating cancer diagnosis. By the time it was discovered, the cancer had already spread beyond his kidney to his lymph nodes and lungs.

Despite chemotherapy, it continued to progress to his liver and bones, and he was relentlessly vomiting, dropping from 74kg to less than 55kg.

Donna said: “Watching that energetic, independent young man become so poorly has been absolutely heartbreaking.

Other symptoms appeared during treatment

After fundraising to afford targeted chemotherapy for the cancer, which is not routinely funded by the NHS, things started looking up and Donna thought her son would survive.

For weeks Nickodemus was no longer vomiting, and doctors said the treatment was working. But, other symptoms started appearing such as dark urine, shoulder pain, jaundiced eyes, and even black vomit.

Donna asked the doctors if something was wrong with his liver, but several scans revealed that his liver hadn’t changed.

Whilst Donna was on a church conference last week, it was the first time she had left her son.

However by Saturday morning, she had received a call from Nickodemus telling her things ‘were bad’

However, the doctors called before she made it there, with the heartbreaking news that her son had passed away and that his liver had failed.

She said: “I just started to scream. I love him so much. He is my only son here, I don’t have anybody.

“I had no indication that he was going to die. The one time I left him in over two years. I went to church and he died. He died by himself.”

Now the mum is raising money to cover his funeral and is encouraging other young people to get checked out.

She added: “Young black guys need to go to their GP regularly to get checked. If you notice any abdominal pain do not ignore it.”

According to the Ricky Casey Trust, RMC requires an entirely distinct medical approach because it does not respond to typically clear cell renal cell carcinoma treatments.

Common symptoms are blood in the urine, which is typically the first sign, persistent pain or discomfort in the side, back, or abdomen around the kidney area and other signs such as unexplained weight loss, a palpable abdominal mass and fatigue.