Silsilat al-Ahadith al-Sahihah

The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "When you learn that a plague has broken out in a certain area, do not go towards it, and do not flee from it." And in another narration: "Through this affliction or disease, a group from the previous nations or the Children of Israel was punished, then it remained on the earth in some form; sometimes it would end and sometimes it would appear again. Now, if a person learns that this disease has come to a certain area, he should not go there, and whoever is already in that area should not leave it fleeing." This hadith is narrated from Sayyiduna Usamah bin Zaid, Sayyiduna Sa'd bin Abi Waqqas, and Sayyiduna Abdur Rahman (may Allah be pleased with them) and others.

Narrated from Sayyidah Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her), the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The plague is martyrdom for my Ummah and regret and remorse for your enemies among the jinn. Its wound is like the gland of a camel, which appears on the armpit and the soft part of the belly. Whoever dies because of this disease is a martyr, and whoever remains steadfast (in the same area) is like one who stays stationed at the frontier in the way of Allah, and whoever flees is like one who flees from battle."

Umrah bint Qais ‘Adawiyyah says: I went to Lady Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) and asked her about fleeing from the plague. She said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “Fleeing from the plague is like fleeing from the battlefield.”