The health agency of the US is closely monitoring a possible case of pneumonic plague in Russia.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC, for its acronym in English), the public health agency of the United States, have indicated this Tuesday that they are "closely monitoring" the alleged case of pneumonic plague detected in Russia, following the death of a scientist in an alleged laboratory accident in Shélejov, in the Irkutsk Oblast, in eastern Siberia.

"The CDC is aware and is closely following reports of a suspected case of pneumonic plague in the Irkutsk region, Russia, which resulted in a death," the agency stated on social media, specifying that it is cooperating with other U.S. institutions "to assess the evolution of events as more information becomes available."

At the same time, the CDC has emphasized that it is "a serious bacterial disease that can be treated with antibiotics, especially when detected and treated in time."

Similarly, and recalling that "pneumonic plague can be transmitted from person to person through respiratory droplets during close contact," the agency has highlighted the importance of implementing public health measures such as "the rapid identification and treatment of infected individuals, as well as the monitoring of those potentially exposed."

In any case, the U.S. agency has insisted that "for now, there are no indications of a greater threat to the United States," although it has stressed that both the CDC and its governmental partners are "prepared" and will continue to closely monitor the situation.

The institution's statement came just hours after Secretary of State Marco Rubio reiterated that Russian authorities must "be transparent" and provide more data about the episode. "There may be nothing to worry about. It may be something more serious than we thought. We don't know," he expressed.

For their part, Russian authorities maintain so far that the epidemiological situation in the Irkutsk region is "stable," after having implemented various emergency measures in recent days following the death of the researcher in an alleged laboratory accident in Shélejov.