Bird flu hits Africa as deadly strain kills 40,000 chickens
A deadly strain of the bird flu virus has killed 40,000 birds on a commercial farm in northern Nigeria, raising fears that the disease has already spread across Africa.
The World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) confirmed yesterday that the first recorded case of H5N1 bird flu in Africa had been found in the northern state of Kaduna, on a farm of 46,000 chickens, geese and ostriches. All the birds have now been killed and farm workers have been placed under quarantine.
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Experts have been warning for some time that it would be difficult to detect and control bird flu in Africa, where millions of families keep chickens for food and for trading. Mortality rates among these domestic chickens can be as high as 80 per cent, and people are unlikely to report the deaths to authorities. The FAO warned last year that bird flu may be mistaken for Newcastle disease.
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In 2004, South Africa culled 4,000 ostriches that were found to have the less serious H5N2 strain. Doctors say that if bird flu does infect humans in Africa, it will ravage populations already weakened by HIV, malaria and malnutrition.
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A deadly strain of the bird flu virus has killed 40,000 birds on a commercial farm in northern Nigeria, raising fears that the disease has already spread across Africa.
The World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) confirmed yesterday that the first recorded case of H5N1 bird flu in Africa had been found in the northern state of Kaduna, on a farm of 46,000 chickens, geese and ostriches. All the birds have now been killed and farm workers have been placed under quarantine.
...
Experts have been warning for some time that it would be difficult to detect and control bird flu in Africa, where millions of families keep chickens for food and for trading. Mortality rates among these domestic chickens can be as high as 80 per cent, and people are unlikely to report the deaths to authorities. The FAO warned last year that bird flu may be mistaken for Newcastle disease.
...
In 2004, South Africa culled 4,000 ostriches that were found to have the less serious H5N2 strain. Doctors say that if bird flu does infect humans in Africa, it will ravage populations already weakened by HIV, malaria and malnutrition.
Related Link
posted by Faustus and FrankenKitty at 5:30 PM
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