January 26, 2004

Bird Flu Kills 3,000 Chickens In Taiwan

A mild strain of bird flu was the suspected cause of death for 3,000 more chickens in Taiwan, officials said Monday.

The birds were apparently infected with the H5N2 flu strain - much less dangerous than the H5N1 strain that has killed poultry - and people - in other parts of Asia, said Chiang Yi-nan, an Agriculture Council official.

Chiang said that according to the council's preliminary investigation, the 3,000 birds in the southern county of Tainan died Jan. 21-25. Officials won't order a mass slaughter of birds at the farm until a final investigation has been completed, he said.

But another agriculture official, Hsiao Tsung-yao, told reporters that Taiwan is still free of the H5N1 strain that has ravaged the poultry industry in South Korea, Japan, Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand.

"Taiwan is not an avian flu infection area," Hsiao said.

The virus has killed seven people so far in Asia - six in Vietnam and one in Thailand.

The officials also announced that Taiwan has suspended poultry imports from Indonesia - one of the latest outbreak areas.

Last week, Taiwan slaughtered about 55,000 after outbreaks of the milder bird flu strain were reported in central and southern Taiwan.