"I'm well, I'm well," he assures off the bat. "And the shelter's, uh, fine. Besides the stress. No one's sick in here, is what I'm saying."

Right. "So we've had some major updates on the, uh, plague situation. We'll--I'll cut to the chase here: it's not good. Over the last few days we've gotten the opportunity to see symptoms advance."

Pauses here, if only to re-read the script and remember how to deliver very bad news in a fashion that is simultaneously as urgent as possible and the least panic-inducing.