January 31, 2007

Russia registers new outbreak of bird flu

Russia has registered its first cases of H5N1 bird flu since an outbreak hit dozens of towns and villages last year, Russian media reported Monday (Jan 31).

The outbreaks occurred in poultry at three locations in the southern Krasnodar region, said Aleksei Alekseyenko, an official at the country's agricultural inspection agency Rosselkhoznadzor, the RIA Novosti news agency reported.

A series of anti-epizootic measures are being undertaken in the unfortunate areas to control the infection, he said.

The three infected areas are located near the country's Black Sea coast.

Bird flu was discovered at over 90 points in southern Russia and Siberia in 2006, with the last quarantine lifted in August.

The EU reported its first case of bird flu this year in Hungary after a flock of geese were tested positive. The outbreak was the first in the EU in six months