March 3, 2006

Sweden tests another 20 dead fowls for bird flu

The Swedish Board of Agriculture late Wednesday (Mar 1) said another 20 dead birds have been found in the area where the two suspected cases of bird flu were discovered Tuesday.

The board said the 20 birds are now being tested by the National Veterinary Institute and that preliminary results are expected Friday.

However, it said no extreme mortality rates have been observed in the area where two ducks infected with the aggressive form of the H5 virus were found earlier in the week. The area, near the nuclear power station in Oskarshamn in the south-east of Sweden, homes about 20,000 ducks.

The two infected ducks are currently undergoing further tests in the UK to determine whether they carry the deadly H5N1 virus.

Chief Veterinary Leif Denneberg has said he suspects the birds died of the H5N1 strain.