Child dies amid outbreak of anthrax in Russia

A child has died amid an outbreak of anthrax in a Siberian region where nomadic reindeer herders have been evacuated due to the epidemic, the governor said.

The appearance of the bacterial disease in the Yamalo-Nenets region is the first fatal anthrax outbreak reported in Russia in 75 years.

A 12-year-old nomad died of anthrax and 20 more people have been diagnosed with it, the office of governor Dmitry Kobylkin said.

Hundreds of herders have been evacuated to the regional capital, Salekhard, for treatment.

More than 2,300 reindeer have died in the outbreak in the remote region 2,000 km north-east of Moscow.

Mr Kobylkin said all reindeer in the area have now been vaccinated and the deaths have stopped.

AP