In this TV-movie thriller, the citizens of New York are galvanised by the threat of bubonic plague, brought back to the city by a young girl following a camping trip. Chaos reigns as the medics receive no official help and the press feeds off the drama. Director Sheldon Larry is a dab hand at this kind of thing, but he rarely pushes his cast to the limit. Kate Jackson, as the doctor in charge, is only energetic and concerned, while the mayor (played by Cagney & Lacey regular Al Waxman) is a near-caricature, only anxious about the effect of the plague on tourism.

On her way home in a plane to New York, the teenage Sarah gets very ill. She realizes too late that it's more than a cold and with her parents still on vacation, she breaks down in the middle of the street and dies shortly after in a hospital -- by the plague, as the terrified coroners find out. While trying to keep this from the public to avoid a panic, epidemic commissioner Dr. Nora Hart has to investigate Sarah's identity and find everyone who had contact with her. If she misses a single person, the plague could kill half the city in a few days!