It is nicknamed the Alcatraz virus, the most dangerous island in Europe. In the Baltic Sea, ultra-protected laboratories are set up about 1 kilometer long and 400 meters wide. How are hundreds of potentially lethal human viruses kept? To enter, you must cross several security barriers and be accompanied.
Thomas Mettenleiter heads this extraordinary research center. He is one of the dozen or so people authorized to approach the most dangerous viruses such as rabies and yellow fever. Exceptionally, it takes us as close as possible to the storage tanks. “It’s at -181 ° C. Here you can keep viruses for years, decades. This is where the storage tanks are kept at very low temperatures”, explains the scientist. The oxygen level in the room is continuously measured to detect the slightest leak and give the alert. Viruses have been preserved since 1910.
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