South Korea confirms 2nd H5N1 outbreak
November 28, 2006 by Grace Ibay
Filed under Diseases & Conditions
South Korea has confirmed that another bird flu outbreak was discovered 2 miles from the Iksan epicenter.
The highly pathogenic form, H5N1, was found in Hwangdeung district and may have spread through chaff vehicles before the quarantine took effect last Wednesday, according to Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry as reported by The Hankyoreh.
The Korea Times reported that 206 chickens out of 12,000 were found dead in this farm by Monday, prompting the farm owner to request virus test. Still another 400 chickens were reportedly found dead the next morning.
In what others may consider an extreme move, South Korean authorities plan to destroy cats, dogs and pigs to prevent the spread of H5N1, even though there is no evidence that farm animals can transmit the virus to humans. Already 125,000 poultry have been slaughtered at and around the Iksan farm, and at least 2 mile radius of both the first and second outbreaks.
[Sources: Medical News Today; The Hankyoreh]
Tags: H5N1, high-pathogenic AI, bird flu outbreak, South Korea
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Check out what others are saying about this post...[...] Where are we on H5N1? South Korea was very much in the news, with two outbreaks occuring a week apart! But Indonesia still topped the charts with 57 human deaths due to the bird flu virus.The expert opinion is that the H5N1 might evolve into a form that passes quickly among humans and become uncontrolled as a pandemic. But, Australia’s chief medical officer stirred controversy by saying that the pandemic might have done a Y2K! This month, we read that a dominant strain of H5N1 originating from China may have developed resistance to vaccines. In response, the Chinese government has refuted this here. The UK also warns about using a single drug against the flu – the reasons being… viruses forming resistance! President Bush was also in the news when he toured a Vietnam lab as pledge of support for the international efforts against bird flu. But at the homefront, trouble might be brewing for the US government when reports surfaced of its vaccine supply expiring. Global efforts to fight this growing menace is going on strong, but we need more cash for Africa, where the bird flu has also spread. [...]