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Official:
SKorean bird flu outbreak caused by 'highly pathogenic' type of
H5N1 |
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SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - An outbreak of bird flu at a South Korean chicken farm was caused by a "highly pathogenic'' type of the virulent H5N1 virus, a health official said Saturday. The official, who didn't give his name, said more details would be released soon in a ministry statement. Earlier, another official confirmed the outbreak was H5N1, but said further detailed tests were being carried out. The outbreak occurred at a chicken farm in Iksan, about 250 kilometers (155 miles) south of Seoul, earlier this week, resulting in the deaths of 6,700 chickens. Quarantine officials were slaughtering an additional 6,300 chickens to prevent the virus from spreading. |
Earlier, quarantine officials in Iksan said they would slaughter chickens and ducks as well as dogs, pigs and cats within a 500-meter (1,650-foot) radius if the virus turned out to be the highly pathogenic variety of H5N1, said Kim Joo-il, an official at Iksan city hall. Kim said the owner of the chicken farm has so far showed no signs of illness. South Korea killed 5.3 million birds during the last known outbreak of bird flu in 2003. The H5N1 virus began ravaging Asian poultry stocks in late 2003 and has killed at least 153 people worldwide. - AP |
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