March 27, 2006

Russia says bird flu contained in southern Russia

An outbreak of bird flu in southern Krasnodar Territory has been contained through mass vaccination of poultry, the region's governor Alexander Tkachev said Friday.

He reported that the situation has stabilized now and bird flu had been contained thanks to vaccines sent by federal authorities.

Krasnodar was one of the worst bird flu affected regions in Russia. Over a million birds have been slaughtered in the area since last month's outbreak, but a vaccination campaign launched at local poultry farms in March has averted an epidemic.

No human cases of bird flu have been reported in Russia so far.