Chinese authorities say bird flu under control

According to Chinese authorities the bird flu outbreak in southern China has now been brought under control following the culling of all poultry and other birds in the affected area.

The agricultural ministry says 36,130 ducks have been exterminated and destroyed and the epidemic has been brought under effective control.

The outbreak of the H5N1 strain of bird flu was confirmed by authorities on Monday in ducks on a farm in the Panyu district of Guangdong province which borders Hong Kong; an outbreak was first reported there by local authorities on September 5th which killed 9,830 ducks.

Officials say there have been no reports of human bird flu cases in Panyu district, but to date of 25 human cases in China, 16 have died.

China's agricultural ministry says emergency enforced vaccinations have taken place in areas threatened by the epidemic that could be easily infected and all fowl in the infected area have been exterminated.

The ministry also says veterinarian experts have tested animals in areas adjacent to the infected area and have yet to find any other cases of bird flu but an additional 10,000 poultry in the area will be culled.

A 21-day ban on imports has been imposed by Hong Kong on all live poultry, eggs and chilled or frozen meat from farms near the affected area and a ban on poultry products from Guangdong province will remain in effect for a week.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), to date bird flu has killed 200 people and poultry flocks worldwide have been decimated since the virus reappeared in 2003.

The Ministry of Agriculture is apparently sending 12 teams to Chinese localities to supervise the prevention and control of the bird flu outbreak in preparation for autumn when major animal-related diseases are more frequent.

The aim is to minimise the risks from frequent poultry trade across the country before two major annual festivals.