Perceptual Errors Regarding “Sharp-Type” Dangers. October

General forecast for humanity for October 2026. Part 2 (prepared at the end of September, published on October 5, 2026, link).

S. Dragan:

And in terms of local but noticeable events, the period around October 9, 2026, can be mentioned separately. This time, or rather the planetary configuration, which does not last very long—about three days—may clearly fray some people's nerves, spoil their mood, and create a most unpleasant basis for mistakes.

Most importantly, these will largely be errors of perception. … It may well affect many people and create very alarming effects, especially concerning … biological, medical issues...

The Confirmation “Dangers of Various Kinds. Early October” dated October 8, 2026, noted that “October began with an intensification of bad news and, specifically around October 2, 2026, with the creation of various unfavorable developments: dangers of a sharper kind” (General forecast for humanity dated September 24, 2026).

And this “creation of sharp-toned dangers” took the form of panic that arose over the potentially possible spread of plague.

As often happens in such cases, Russophobic mass media immediately seized on the topic, attempting to substantially raise the level of tension. This is precisely what was meant by “the period around October 9, 2026, in terms of local but noticeable events.”

And all sorts of people became active on this topic—wanting to find out what had really happened in Irkutsk—including U.S. Secretary of State Mark Rubio.

“We urge Russia to be transparent and provide the world with more information so that everyone can respond appropriately,” Rubio told reporters on Tuesday, October 6, 2026.

At the same time, the head of the State Department noted that Washington still had an insufficient amount of data to draw conclusions about the origin of the infection or the circumstances of the infection.

According to Rubio, at this stage it would be wrong to speculate about how the infection occurred. The American side, he emphasized, expects additional information from Russia that would make it possible to assess the situation and the potential risks.

Although many “well-wishers” were not particularly waiting for anything and had no intention of looking for truthful information about what was happening, instead immediately sounding the alarm about a new epidemic.

Analyzing the entire flow of incoming information, one comes to the conclusion that “this time, or rather the planetary configuration, which does not last very long—about three days—clearly frayed some people's nerves, spoiled their mood, and created a most unpleasant basis for mistakes.

Most importantly, these were largely errors of perception. … It affects many people and creates very alarming effects, especially concerning … biological, medical issues...”

But let us return to the events that blew up the information space.

How rumors of plague in Irkutsk emerged

The story began not with a report about plague, but with information about the closure of the inpatient unit at the Shelekhov District Hospital. On the evening of October 1, the local channel “My Shelekhov” reported that the institution had stopped admitting visitors because of suspicion of an “especially dangerous infection.” On the night of October 2, it became known that 28-year-old Darya Shipilova, an employee of the Irkutsk Scientific Research Anti-Plague Institute, had died.

Against this backdrop, the first version involving plague emerged. Public pages wrote that the woman allegedly died of pneumonic plague after breaking a test tube containing the infectious agent in a laboratory. However, there was no official confirmation of this.

The origin of this version is traced in greater detail in an investigation by foreign-agent media outlets, which other media and public pages cited. According to the publication, the deceased employee of the anti-plague institute allegedly broke a test tube containing the pneumonic plague pathogen and concealed what had happened.

An additional boost to the rumors was given by a statement from the head of Buryatia, Alexey Tsydenov. On October 2, 2026, he wrote that the woman who had “died of plague” in the Irkutsk Region had not traveled to Buryatia, although he later edited the post and added the word “possibly.” Thus, the word “plague” first appeared in a statement by an official as well, although there was no confirmed diagnosis at that time.

Subsequently, other Telegram channels and media outlets began repeating the version of infection in the laboratory. At the same time, the original information about the “broken test tube” never received official confirmation.

Why the plague rumor was not confirmed

The official version proved considerably less sensational. Rospotrebnadzor reported that the deceased woman had been diagnosed with pneumonia of unknown etiology, and tests had not detected microorganisms associated with her professional activities in her biological material. No accidents involving pathogenic microorganisms were found at the institute either. The agency described the sanitary and epidemiological situation in the Irkutsk Region, Irkutsk, and Shelekhov as stable.

People who had been in contact with the deceased woman were placed under medical observation. According to Rospotrebnadzor, two cases of COVID-19 and two cases of rhinovirus infection were identified among them; no other infectious disease pathogens were detected. By October 7, about 5,000 tests had been conducted among approximately 200 people under observation, and no dangerous infections had been identified.

There is also an important timing factor. According to the World Health Organization, the incubation period for plague usually ranges from one to seven days, while in the pneumonic form symptoms may appear in about a day. The CDC states that for pneumonic plague, the typical incubation period is one to three days, and a person exposed more than seven days earlier who remains healthy is very unlikely to become ill.

Therefore, if infection specifically in the laboratory on September 25 is assumed, as claimed in the initial version of the rumor, by October 8 the incubation period had already been exceeded considerably. This does not eliminate the need for medical observation following actual contact with the infection, but it does not confirm a scenario of mass spread of plague in Irkutsk.

Overall, that is what happened. Let us repeat that clarifying the situation “required a not very long period, approximately just over three days, which clearly frayed some people's nerves, spoiled their mood, and created a most unpleasant basis for mistakes. But most importantly, these were largely errors of perception...”

To be continued.