August 20, 2004

Malaysia Confirms The Presence Of H5N1 Strain Of Bird Flu

Malaysia confirmed Thursday that the bird flu virus found in chickens in a northern village is the same strain blamed for the deaths of 27 people in Asia.

Senior agriculture ministry officials said tests showed that the H5N1 strain was present in the chickens. Poultry in the village was being slaughtered to keep the disease from spreading.

"It is H5N1. We are confident it is contained in that area for now," Abi Musa Asa'ari Mohamed Nor, secretary-general of the Agriculture Ministry, told a news conference.

Earlier, the Malaysian Veterinary Department said preliminary tests indicated that the strain was not the lethal H5N1, but that more tests were needed. The strain had jumped from chickens to people in Thailand and Vietnam, causing human fatalities.

Subsequent tests overturned that result and the early optimism that H5N1 had not entered this Southeast Asian country, which had been spared the outbreak of bird flu that caused a health scare around Asia earlier this year.

Malaysia suspended poultry exports Wednesday as a precaution against spreading infected fowl, though poultry remains on sale in local outlets. Neighboring Singapore has banned poultry from Malaysia.