Chinese authorities have said that the country's first bird flu
outbreak among poultry since February is under control.
More than 17,100 poultry have been slaughtered to prevent further spread of
the virus, and the area has been disinfected. No new suspected bird flu cases
have been discovered near the infected area.
China's national bird
flu laboratory recently confirmed the presence of H5N1 at the farm in Hetian
county, which is on a flight path for birds migrating between east Africa and
west Asia. The virus strain in the latest outbreak was similar to one found in
migratory birds in neighbouring Qinghai and Tibet earlier this
year.
This case is the first in poultry since the outbreak in the
eastern province of Anhui in February, although a series of bird flu cases have
been reported in China among wild birds in recent months.
The latest
case brings the total number of outbreaks in Chinese poultry to 35 since October
last year. Since then, 12 people have died from 18 reported infections, a higher
mortality rate than generally seen elsewhere.
by
Editor WorldPoultry
Jun 12, 2006
last update:Jun 13, 2006