Bird flu outbreak under control: China
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.
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