The World Health Organisation (WHO) conducted a pandemic simulation exercise last week, testing global readiness for a major disease outbreak.
The exercise, codenamed "Mammothpox", involved officials from 15 countries responding to a fictional virus scenario.
The desktop simulation was led from WHO headquarters in Geneva under the supervision of Dr Mike Ryan, director of the agency's Health Emergencies Programme.
The fictional scenario depicted a team of scientists and documentary filmmakers excavating a woolly mammoth from the Arctic tundra.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) conducted a pandemic simulation exercise last week, testing global readiness for a major disease outbreak
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After discovering a "remarkably well-preserved" specimen, they thawed and analysed tissue samples on site.
Upon returning to their home countries, team members began falling ill with symptoms of a pox-like illness.
The scenario quickly escalated, with ICUs becoming "overwhelmed" and health systems struggling to cope.
While the disease depicted was fictitious, the exercise was based on real scientific concerns.
"Scientific research has demonstrated that ancient viruses can remain viable in permafrost for thousands of years," according to WHO briefing documents.
"The thawing of permafrost due to climate change has raised concerns about the potential release of pathogens previously unknown to modern medicine."
The simulated virus was described as "severe, with a mortality intermediate between Mpox and Smallpox".
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Smallpox historically killed about 30 per cent of those infected before its eradication in 1980.
The fictional pathogen was deemed "controllable" but only with "effective coordinated responses – similar to SARS or Mpox".
Scientists calculated the virus's reproduction number at between 1.6 and 2.3 after it spread through a cruise ship.
Among the participants in the two-day simulation were representatives from Denmark, Somalia, Qatar, Germany, Saudi Arabia, and Ukraine.
The United States and China did not take part.
Each country was given a "small piece of the puzzle" to test how well they would share information and collaborate to contain the virus spread.
In the simulation, countries adopted divergent containment strategies.
Some implemented "strict border controls, banned all international arrivals and restricted internal movement," according to exercise documents.
Others maintained "open borders with minimal restrictions," relying instead on "contact tracing, isolation, and quarantine measures".
The exercise, codenamed 'Mammothpox', involved officials from 15 countries responding to a fictional virus scenario
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This mirrored real-world Covid-19 responses, where countries like Singapore and Taiwan used ports as first-line defences, while others, including Britain, kept borders largely open.
Throughout the simulation, health officials joined Zoom calls to share outbreak details and debate responses.
"Some of the countries were being very strict about border controls and in some cases very close neighbouring countries were being very loose, so on the calls we could have discussions around how we could harmonise those approaches," said Dr Scott Dowell, a senior WHO adviser.
Dr Nedret Emiroglu, a WHO Health Emergencies Programme director, said the scenario was designed to be "realistic with the ability to spread around the world".
While Exercise Polaris was underway, negotiations on a new "pandemic treaty" continued at the WHO.
After three years of difficult talks, including disagreements over drug and vaccine distribution, an agreement could be reached as early as Tuesday, sources told The Telegraph.
The countries in the mammothpox exercise successfully contained the virus, though the WHO acknowledged a real outbreak would be more complex.
Meanwhile, real excavations continue in Siberian permafrost, where receding ice has sparked a scientific gold rush.
In 2023, Nasa researchers unfroze a 48,500-year-old "zombie virus" found alongside mammoth remains that would be lethal to humans.
The New York Times recently revealed Siberian ivory hunters are scavenging for mammoth remains without precautions for ancient pathogens.
An estimated 10 million mammoths remain buried in Arctic permafrost.
