Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Bird flu outbreak strikes Khanh Hoa


HA NOI — A fresh outbreak of avian flu (A/H5N1) has been reported in central Khanh Hoa Province, killing nearly 10,000 birds.

Affected areas have been decontaminated and poultry incinerated, said a spokesperson from the provincial Animal Health Unit.

The latest outbreak has brought the number of provinces affected by the flu to six: Dien Bien, Nam Dinh, Nghe An, Khanh Hoa, Soc Trang and Ca Mau, said Hoang Van Nam from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

The bird flu epidemic has continued to spread in these provinces, killing thousands of poultry since it re-emerged last December despite efforts to prevent contagion.

Last December, nearly 6,000 birds were contaminated with A/H5N1 in southernmost Ca Mau Province alone. Infections spread to two more communes of the province this week, causing 600 affected birds to be culled and raising the total number of affected communes to ten.

There is a high risk of the flu spreading to other localities, especially in the Mekong Delta region as ducks migrated during harvest time, said Nam.

The ministry urged the provinces to increase efforts to combat and prevent the spread of the flu, and ensure more monitoring of transportation and poultry slaughterhouses, he added.

The province's poultry flocks would continue to be vaccinated although it was necessary for households to co-operate with authorities to inform them about their poultry stocks to ensure timely vaccinations

Over the last two weeks, three people from the provinces of Tuyen Quang in the north, Tien Giangin the south and Khanh Hoa in the central were diagnosed with A/H5N1. One of the infected, a 38-year-old woman from Tien Giang Province, died from the flu. — VNS

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