A WHO official said today, Tuesday, that an outbreak of bubonic plague (also called bubonic plague, lumpy plague or haemorrhagic plague) in China was being "handled well" and not a major risk.
The authorities issued a warning in the city of Bayan Nur, in the Inner Mongolia region of China, on Sunday, one day after informing a hospital of a suspected case of bubonic plague.
This came after four cases of plague were reported there last November, including two cases of pneumonic plague, another more deadly type.
"We are monitoring the outbreaks in China, and we are following it closely with the participation of the Chinese and Mongolian authorities," WHO spokeswoman Margaret Harris told a UN press briefing in Geneva.
She added: "At the moment we do not consider it a matter of great risk, but we are following it and watching it carefully."
The bubonic plague, known in the Middle Ages as "black death", is a highly contagious disease that is often fatal and is often spread by rodents.
Plague cases are common in China, although they are becoming increasingly rare. China recorded 26 injuries and 11 deaths between 2009 and 2018.