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UN warns of
flu threat from migrating fowl
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BEIJING: The UN’s point man on bird flu warned in China on Friday that migrating fowl appear more susceptible to the disease, while countries in the region announced bans on poultry imports and discussed preparedness plans that could involve sealing off borders. China’s latest outbreak of the virulent H5N1 bird flu strain was reported this week in its northern Inner Mongolia region. Scientists say the country is a huge incubator for the disease because of its large poultry industry and vast territory, even though it has reported no human cases. “There has been a shift in the susceptibility of wild fowl to H5N1,” David Nabarro, chief U.N. coordinator for avian and human influenza, said in Beijing. “That’s something |
that needs very careful attention if we’re going to be ready for possible introduction of the bird flu virus in other locations through wild fowl.” Nabarro spoke during a bird flu fact-finding mission that also included stops in Thailand and Vietnam. His visit came as China was considering the feasibility of stockpiling the antiviral drug Tamiflu, which it doesn’t currently produce, the state-run China Daily said. “It is highly unlikely that we can fulfill large Tamiflu orders at short notice,” Shanghai Roche Pharmaceuticals Ltd. spokeswoman Xu Chao told the newspaper. She said the country would need to import the drug, which is made by Swiss-based Roche Holding AG. |
The virus has killed more than 60 people in Southeast Asia since it began ravaging poultry farms in late 2003. Health officials fear it could mutate to a form easily spread among people, possibly sparking a global pandemic. So far, most human cases have been traced to contact with birds. Hong Kong and New Zealand on Friday announced plans to possibly seal off their borders if bird flu begins spreading from person to person. “I think we will have some warning because the first cases will happen overseas” and the first line of defense will be to close the borders, Tony Fenwick of New Zealand’s Ministry of Economic Development told the country’s National Radio. |
Hong Kong’s health secretary said it might shut its border with mainland China in the event of human-to-human transmission. Such action would likely mean large economic losses since much of Hong Kong’s food and other supplies are trucked in from the mainland. China’s biggest city, Shanghai, also announced it would begin sterilizing arriving travelers’ shoe soles, the official Xinhua News Agency reported. Passengers arriving by land, sea and air are all expected to undergo shoe disinfection, but the report did not give details on how authorities would enforce such precautions for the millions of people traveling into the city each day.-AP
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