ULAN BATOR, May 1 (Xinhua) -- A district of the western Mongolian province of Bayan-Ulgii has been quarantined after two people died of suspected bubonic plague, local media reported Wednesday.
A couple died in suspicious circumstances in Ulgii district of the western province in late April, news website gogo.mn quoted the province's emergency management department as saying.
"Preliminary test results show that bubonic plague likely caused the deaths of the two people. The province's office has declared an indefinite quarantine in Ulgii soum," the department said in a statement, adding that further investigation of the case is still underway.
The plague is a bacterial disease that is spread by fleas living on wild rodents such as marmots. The disease can kill an adult in fewer than 24 hours if not treated in time, according to the World Health Organization.
