January 15, 2004

Taiwan Slaughters 20,000 Chickens Infected With Virus

A Taiwanese farm slaughtered 20,000 chickens Thursday after some of the birds tested positive for a mild strain of avian flu - a virus that has ravaged poultry in other parts of Asia, an official said.

The chickens in the central county of Changhua were infected with the H5N2 strain, less dangerous than the H5N1 flu strain that has struck farms in Vietnam, Japan and South Korea resulting in the deaths of millions of birds, said Lin Shih-yu, a Council of Agriculture official.

"The illness posed a potential, but not an immediate threat, and we decided to take the most stringent measure," Lin told reporters.