China Confirms Bird Flu Outbreak In Tibet
December 12, 2011
China’s Ministry of Agriculture on Monday confirmed an outbreak of bird flu at a village in southwest China’s Tibet Autonomous Region, state-run Xinhua News Agency reported.
Laboratory tests showed that the highly pathogenic H5N1 avian flu killed 290 fowls raised by farmers in the village in the Tibetan capital of Lhasa on Dec. 2, an official with the ministry said, according to the report.
The epidemic is under control and no abnormal physical conditions were reported in people who had close contact with the dead birds, said the official.
Authorities have sealed off and sterilized the infected area, where 1,575 fowls were culled and safely disposed of in order to prevent the disease from spreading.
Bird flu, or avian influenza, is a contagious disease of animal origin caused by viruses that normally infect only birds and, less commonly, pigs. It can be fatal to humans.
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