December 27, 2005

Bird flu hits another Romanian village

Bird flu recently hit another Romanian village in the south-eastern Ialomita county. According to the national veterinary authority, all poultry in Albesti village were culled after they tested positive for the H5 type of bird flu during preliminary tests.

This marked the third bird flu incident in Ialomita county, where Stelnica and Traian villages were hit by outbreaks earlier.

Further tests would be conducted to confirm if the exact strain was the deadly H5N1 that has claimed dozens of human lives in Asia already.

23 villages in or near the Danube Delta region have reported bird flu incidences so far, the agriculture ministry said.

Over 100,000 head of poultry have also been culled since the country's first case was reported in October.

Meanwhile, the government said it has allocated over EUR2 million (about US$2.38 million) to support anti-bird flu measures along highways and stations in affected areas.