January 14, 2004

Japan Confirm Bird Flu Strain Identical To HK, S.Korea and Vietnam

The Japan Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Ministry has confirmed Tuesday the bird flu detected in Yamaguchi Prefecture was H5N1 strain, the same virus that triggered bird influenza in South Korea, Hong Kong and Vietnam.

Determining whether the virus is identical to the one detected in South Korea requires a further analysis. The ministry said it was likely that the virus had been carried from abroad to Japan by migratory birds.

Also Tuesday, the ministry established a task force to prevent a further outbreak of bird flu in cooperation with the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry and the Yamaguchi prefectural government.

Yamaguchi prefectural government officials on Tuesday slaughtered and buried all chickens at a poultry farm in the prefecture where about 6,000 chickens have died of a highly virulent strain of bird flu since Dec. 28.

The farm ministry has started full-fledged efforts to trace down the route of the infection, with the prefectural government inspecting other farms in the prefecture, following the outbreak of the avian disease at Win Win Farm in Atocho, Yamaguchi Prefecture.

Clad in protective gear, 15 prefectural officials and others began slaughtering chickens at the farm at about 10 a.m. Mainly using carbon dioxide, they gassed the chickens and buried them in the compound while also disinfecting the area.

Meanwhile, 25 officials of the prefectural government's Livestock Hygiene Service Center visited other farms in the prefecture to check the health of their chickens.

Officials are expected to inspect 221 poultry farms and 136 family farms in the prefecture.