January 12, 2007

Thousands of poultry die in central Vietnam

Authorities in Vietnam on Thursday said that thousands of poultry animals in six districts in the central Quang Nam province have died in the last few days on suspicion of bird flu.

The provincial Veterinary Bureau said ducks and chickens from Thang Binh, Duy Xuyen, Dien Ban, Que Son, Nui Thanh and Dai Loc, have been dying though the birds were not tested for H5N1 virus.

But tests conducted on several unvaccinated fowls in the six districts have tested positive to the bird flu virus raising suspicion that the fowl have died because of the H5N1 strain.

Since December 2006, at least 42 communities in 17 districts in four Vietnamese provinces have been stricken with bird flu.

The Department of Animal Health under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development have forcibly culled some 42,000 poultry in the provinces of Ca Mau, Bac Lieu, Hau Giang and Kien Giang since the outbreak of bird flu.

Dozens of millions of fowl across Vietnam have been killed through forced culling since bird flu virus was first detected in the region in December 2003.