Dead Birds Close Downtown Austin (TX)

Niko · Jan 8, 2007

Re: Protocols - Re: Dead Birds Close Downtown Austin (TX)

Re: Protocols - Re: Dead Birds Close Downtown Austin (TX)

Thornton said:
Protocols

The protocols I could find related to wild birds or to commercial poultry.
I have not come across a protocol specific for urban birds.

jt

Thank you for your thoroughness!

I suppose now we take a deep breath and await results of testing.

Niko · Jan 8, 2007

Re: Dead Birds Close Downtown Austin (TX)

Jan 8, 2007 9:12 pm US/Central
Dead Birds Sent For To Texas A&M For Testing

Kim Miller
Reporting

(CBS 42) AUSTIN Samples of 63 dead birds are in on their way to Texas A&M in order to solve a mystery on Congress Ave.

Someone spotted a few of those dead grackles around 3 a.m. Monday and called police.

The theory health experts are leaning toward is that this may be an intentional poisoning. Initially, police and firefighters called in all emergency responders to rule out air contamination and terror attacks.

The hazardous material teams collected the bird from the streets, sidewalks, and rooftops. Sixty-three dead birds, mostly grackles with a few pigeons and sparrows in the mix.

Police shut down Congress Ave. from Cesar Chavez to 11th Street and one block on either side until a little after noon.

Health officials immediately tested the air, called emergency rooms to check for unusual illnesses that might be related, then tested the birds on site.

?The external feathers, based on some of the on site gas chromatography testing that we did, were negative for any type of volatile chemicals," said Dr. Adolfo Valadez, medical director for Austin/Travis County Health and Human Services Department.

Health officials say this does not appear to be bird flu and it's the wrong time of year for West Nile Virus. But nothing gets ruled out until they get bacteria and virus tests back from Texas A&M and bird flu test back from a lab in Ames, Iowa.

?We may suspect a poisoning of those birds, but again I don't have any confirmation of that, and, again, I still need final testing," Valadez said.

Experts say there is always the possibility of natural causes. They say birds aren't the cleanest animals. They drink contaminated water and spread disease quickly.

The bottom line, health experts quickly figured out there was no risk to public health and reopened the main artery of downtown Austin.

Valadez says the tests they're waiting on will take days if not weeks.

Austin police say, if it turns out someone did poison these birds on purpose, they could face criminal charges for violating health codes or for unlicensed use of pesticides.

If you find suspicious dead birds, the health authority asks you call 311, so the city can compile that information.

(? MMVII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
http://keyetv.com/topstories/local_story_008221206.html

hawkeye · Jan 9, 2007

Re: Dead Birds Close Downtown Austin (TX)

bird flu has already been ruled out

Aside from the above statement...this shows some clear thinking on the part of the Asst. City Manager, I wonder if all City Managers are this smart. :applause:

"We're finding out now that we don't feel that there was anything there. There was no risk to public health, but you don't know that until you work your way through the investigation," Asst. City Manager Michael McDonald said.

Bird Flu Ruled Out On Dead Birds; Testing Continues Tuesday

Jan 9, 2007 08:44 AM

It should be business as usual Tuesday around Downtown Austin, but there's still no word on what caused the deaths of more than 60 birds.

Preliminary tests showed no dangerous chemicals in the area, and the bird flu has been ruled out.

While officials search for answers, they say they're confident that there's no public health threat.

"Yeah, it sounds most like a poisoning, if I had to guess," said Jacob Mireles, D.V.M., with the Brykerwood Veterinary Clinic, "and I'm pretty sure that's what it's going to come out as."

The carcasses of the more than 60 grackles, sparrows and pigeons have been sent to Texas A&M, where tests will be performed on Tuesday.

Also, some are asking if it was really necessary to shut down the heart of the city because of these dead birds. Those who made the call at City Hall say there really is no question.

"We're finding out now that we don't feel that there was anything there. There was no risk to public health, but you don't know that until you work your way through the investigation," Asst. City Manager Michael McDonald said.

These birds can be a nuisance to a lot of business owners and people downtown. If someone poisoned the birds, could that person be held liable for the costs associated with the emergency response?

The city's legal team told KXAN Monday they wouldn't answer that question until they know for sure what killed the birds.

Jeremy · Jan 9, 2007

Re: Dead Birds Close Downtown Austin (TX)

You know what is really nice to see.

Bird Flu being one of the first tests performed in a situation such as this.

This was not the case 1 year ago.

Daisy · Jan 9, 2007

Dozens of Dead Birds - Downtown Austin

Dozens of Dead Birds - Downtown Austin

<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=940 border=0><TBODY><TR vAlign=top><TD align=left><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>Officials: Air quality OK after dozens of dead birds found in Austin</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE height=25 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>Updated 1/8/2007 10:13 PM ET</TD><TD align=right>E-mail | Save | Print |<SCRIPT type=text/javascript> </SCRIPT> Reprints & Permissions | Subscribe to stories like this  </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
</TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top align=left><TABLE style="FLOAT: left" cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0><TBODY><TR><TD><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=245 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD colSpan=2></TD><TD vAlign=top width=20 rowSpan=3>

</TD></TR><TR><TD class=vaLink width=80 height=18> Enlarge</TD><TD class=photoCredit align=right width=165>By Brian K. Diggs, American-Statesman via AP</TD></TR><TR><TD colSpan=2 height=1>

</TD></TR><TR><TD class=photoCredit colSpan=2>Crews collect dead birds on a closed off stretch of Congress Avenue in Austin, Texas, Monday.</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

<SCRIPT type=text/javascript>swapContent('firstHeader','applyHeader');</SCRIPT>By William M. Welch, USA TODAY
AUSTIN, Texas ? Ten city blocks in front of the Texas Capitol in Austin were closed and the city triggered its terrorism-response plan Monday when dozens of dead birds were discovered along a main thoroughfare.
Congress Avenue was reopened before 1 p.m. after city officials and health experts concluded there was no threat to people.
Initial tests provided no explanation for the deaths of 63 birds. The birds ? pigeons, sparrows and grackles ? were sent to state and federal veterinary labs for tests.
Adolfo Valadez, medical director of the Austin/Travis County Health and Human Services Department, said the birds may have been deliberately poisoned. Grackles ? which are large, noisy blackbirds ? and pigeons are often regarded as nuisances.
"We don't have a final cause," Valadez said. "Given all the information we have ? we do not feel this was any type of terrorist threat, an intentional poisoning trying to hurt humans."
Police found the dead birds about 3 a.m., city spokesman Gene Acuna said. City officials ordered Congress Avenue and adjacent streets closed well before workers began arriving at downtown offices. Workers in hazardous-materials suits tested the air for contaminants, and workers dissected one of the birds in a search for an obvious cause of death.
"Downtown Austin was shut down pretty much until noon as additional testing was done," Acuna said. "There was nothing in our air sampling that we found that posed any public threat."
Concern about a threat was heightened by the location, directly in front of the state Capitol, and the timing, a day before the Texas Legislature convenes for its 2007 session. That led officials to trigger the terrorism-response plan as a precaution, Valadez said.
"If anything, we've become much more suspicious and prepared" since 9/11 and the anthrax attacks of 2001, he said.
Dead birds were sent to the Texas A&M University veterinary school in College Station and the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Animal Disease Center in Ames, Iowa. It could take several weeks for tests to be completed, Valadez said.
Besides poisoning, the labs are looking for signs of bacteriological or viral diseases. "These birds might have died a natural death due to infection," Valadez said.

<TABLE height=25 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD colSpan=2 height=40>Posted 1/8/2007 9:19 AM ET </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-01-08-austin-birds_x.htm</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

HenryN · Jan 9, 2007

Re: Dead Birds Close Downtown Austin (TX)

Officials: Unclear what killed birds

[SIZE=-1]01:38 PM CST on Tuesday, January 9, 2007

[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]By SHELTON GREEN
KVUE News[/SIZE]
It could be weeks before we know what killed dozens of birds in downtown Austin overnight Monday.
A total of 63 birds, most of them grackles, were found scattered all around Congress Avenue area early Monday.
The scare got the attention of the Center for Disease Control and local authorities who shut down the busy avenue for hours.
The folks who work and live near Congress and were shut out of their businesses say the bird problem is costing them business.
"We use a little horn here occasionally. We tried owls, fake owls and snakes up in the trees, we've tried netting but nothing really seems to drive them off," said Rob Sutherland, Hickory Street Patio Cafe.
Initial test results suggests there was no threat to people.

http://www.kvue.com/news/green/stories/010907kvuedeadbirdscare-cb.23662ad0.html

MHSC · Jan 9, 2007

Re: Dead Birds Close Downtown Austin (TX)

Drunken Pigeons? Austin Bird Kill Spurs Speculation

(January 9, 2007)--Maybe those dead birds in Austin were drunk.
That's one theory on why about 60 dead birds forced the closure Monday of some streets in downtown Austin.
<table style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tbody><tr><td class="headercolor" colspan="3">

</td></tr><tr valign="top"></tr></tbody></table><table style="" align="right" border="0"><tbody><tr><td align="\center\" valign="\bottom\"><scr type="text/javascript" src="http://cas.clickability.com/cas/cas.js?r=%27+Math.random%28%29+%27&p=97&c=6500&m=547&d=60282&pre=%3Ctable+style%3D%22float+%3A+right%3B%22+border%3D%220%22%3E%3Ctbody%3E%3Ctr%3E%3Ctd+align%3D%22center%22+valign%3D%22bottom%22%3E&post=%3C%2Ftd%3E%3C%2Ftr%3E%3C%2Ftbody%3E%3C%2Ftable%3E" ipt="#DEFAULT" language="Javascript"></scr>
</td></tr></tbody></table>Experts say there was no public health threat.
Officials are awaiting lab results that could take up to one week, perhaps longer.
The carcasses of grackles, sparrows and pigeons were found along Congress Avenue between 6th and 8th Streets.
A spokeswoman for the Austin-Travis County Health and Human Services says Avian flu is not suspected in the deaths of the birds.
One theory is that the birds ate fermented berries and were intoxicated, or they were disoriented by new high-rise structures in downtown Austin and hit the reflective glass.
Accidental mistletoe berry poisoning has also been suggested.

http://www.kwtx.com/home/headlines/5137481.html

MHSC · Jan 9, 2007

Re: Dead Birds Close Downtown Austin (TX)

This story covers Australia and Texas

[FONT=palatino, times new roman, georgia, times]

[/FONT]
[FONT=palatino, times new roman, georgia, times]Tuesday, January 9, 2007
[/FONT]
<hr size="1">  <hr noshade="noshade" size="1">  [FONT=palatino, times new roman, georgia, times][FONT=Verdana,][SIZE=-1]ANIMAL KINGDOM[/FONT]
[FONT=Palatino,][SIZE=+2]'Catastrophic': Now thousands of birds fall from sky[/SIZE][/FONT]
[FONT=Palatino,][SIZE=+1]Wildlife officers baffled, autopsies shed no light on mystery[/SIZE][/FONT]
[/SIZE][/FONT]<hr size="1"> [FONT=palatino, times new roman, georgia, times][SIZE=-1]Posted: January 9, 2007
9:07 p.m. Eastern

 [/SIZE][/FONT]
<hr size="1">  [FONT=palatino, times new roman, georgia, times][SIZE=-1]  ? 2007 WorldNetDaily.com  [/SIZE][/FONT]
[FONT=palatino, times new roman, georgia, times]Thousands of birds inexplicably dropped like rocks from the sky over Australia. [/FONT]
<table align="center"> <tbody><tr> <td width="500">

Thousands of wattle birds like this one have mysteriously dropped dead in Australia</td> </tr> </tbody></table>
[FONT=palatino, times new roman, georgia, times]The mysterious catastrophe has taken place over a period of three weeks in Esperance, about 450 miles southeast of Perth. The area was declared a disaster zone by government officials. [/FONT]
[FONT=palatino, times new roman, georgia, times]So far, authorities are clueless as to the cause. Autopsies on the birds have shed no light. [/FONT]
[FONT=palatino, times new roman, georgia, times]The main casualties, according to Australian news sources, are wattle birds, yellow-throated miners, new holland honeyeaters and singing honeyeaters. Some dead crows, hawks and pigeons have also been found. [/FONT]
[FONT=palatino, times new roman, georgia, times]Some birds were seen convulsing when they died. [/FONT]
[FONT=palatino, times new roman, georgia, times]Wildlife officers are baffled by what they characterize as a "catastrophic" event. It does not appear to be weather-related. [/FONT]
[FONT=palatino, times new roman, georgia, times]<script type="text/javascript"></script> [/FONT]
[FONT=palatino, times new roman, georgia, times]District nature conservation coordinator Mike Fitzgerald said: "It's very substantial. We estimate several thousand birds are dead, although we don't have a clear number because of the large areas of bushland." [/FONT]
[FONT=palatino, times new roman, georgia, times]Birds Australia, the nation's main bird conservation group, said it had not heard of a similar occurrence. "Not on that scale, and all at the same time, and also the fact that it's several different species," chief executive Graeme Hamilton said. "You'd have to call that a most unusual event and one that we'd all have to be concerned about." [/FONT]
[FONT=palatino, times new roman, georgia, times]Just yesterday, some 60 birds fell out of the sky in Austin, Texas, without explanation. [/FONT]
[FONT=palatino, times new roman, georgia, times]The incident prompted street closings for several hours. [/FONT]
[FONT=palatino, times new roman, georgia, times]Officials said they had tested the air for dangerous substances but found nothing, and they declared the area safe. [/FONT]
[FONT=palatino, times new roman, georgia, times]The dead birds ? grackles, sparrows and pigeons ? were being checked for avian flu, but officials said they saw no symptoms of the illness and believed it more likely they had been poisoned, possibly deliberately, or affected by near-freezing weather.[/FONT]

[FONT=palatino, times new roman, georgia, times]http://www.wnd.com/news/printer-friendly.asp?ARTICLE_ID=53708 [/FONT]

hawkeye · Jan 10, 2007

Re: Dead Birds Close Downtown Austin (TX)

Looks like people are strating to link events to one another. Whether or not there is an actual link remains to be seen.

It'll be interesting to see if they start to link birds-to-animals-fish-to-birds..etc.
-

MHSC · Jan 10, 2007

Re: Dead Birds Close Downtown Austin (TX)

Training Pays Off For Texas National Guard Team

[FONT=Geneva, Arial, Helvetica, san-serif][SIZE=-2]http://www.gxonline.com/gxintelnews?id=37430

By CMS Gonda Moncada
Courtesy of Texas National Guard Public Affairs[/SIZE][/FONT]

1/10/07, Austin, TX?In a scene reminiscent of emergency measures seen in cities across the country after 9-11, downtown Austin was temporarily blocked to people and traffic on Jan. 8, so authorities could investigate the unexplained deaths of more than 60 birds.

Together with the Austin Police and Fire Departments, Hazmat, EMS, FBI, USDA, Travis County Public Health Emergency Preparedness and Response, the Texas National Guard?s 6th Civil Support Team arrived at 6th and Congress Ave. at 6 a.m., shortly after reports came in of numerous dead birds downtown and people becoming ill.

The 6th CST is one of 55 teams stationed across the nation and is a rapidly deployable, full-time active duty Army and Air National Guard unit available to respond to incidents involving possible weapons of mass destruction, as well as other disasters and catastrophes.

The team represents both federal and state governments by providing support to local emergency responders and has been training for the ?real thing? in many different cities throughout the country.

Its mission is to support civil authorities by identifying unknown chemical, biological or radiological substances, assess current and projected consequences, provide advice on response measures, obtain additional state and federal support, and mitigate hazards.

Consisting of 22 Soldiers and Airmen, the team is trained to deploy, by ground or air within one hour of notification. The team?s goal is to be on scene within a total of four hours in a 250-mile radius from the unit?s base at Camp Mabry.

The quick response January 8th was the result of many hours of exercising with local, state and federal agencies in cities such as Houston, San Antonio and Amarillo, and more.

What is unique to the 6th Civil Support Team is that its fully equipped mobile laboratory is capable of analyzing chemicals and biological agents on-site; usually within 45 minutes to 2-1/2 hours, depending on the agents.

This event was in part moderated because the 6th CST carries with them a state-of-the-art gas chromatograph/mass spectrometer, which provided authorities a quick and accurate summation of what was not found in and on the birds, namely a life threatening agent or foreign substance.

The team was tasked to identify any potential hazards to the public, conduct area air monitoring, collect dead birds and assist with the analysis of any samples collected from the scene.

The Austin Police Department and USDA, Dr. Jim Ammond, were able to confirm at noon that day there were no health threats to the public, and traffic was restored even before the press conference ended.

MAJ Bobbie Jackson, Public Affairs Officer for the 6th CST said: ?One of our biggest assets is our mobile lab and our ability to analyze samples in the hot zone.? She explained that the presumptive analysis is always in support of life and safety so that first responders can make the decision to shelter in place or implement an evacuation.

She explained: ?Usually we receive a courtesy call from the FBI or police department alerting us that there may be a situation where our assistance is required. The actual requirements to deploy will come from the Division of Emergency Management to our Joint Operations Center and on to our staff officer on call.?

The officer on call received the call at around 5 a.m. The report said that three Austin police officers exhibited respiratory distress after observing multiple dead birds in the downtown area. ?That,? she explained, ?turned out to be not the case. The police officers were fine.?

She said that from sleep to scene, it took the team one hour and 20 minutes to report to the incident commander. ?Initially,? she said: ?The Austin PD, the fire department and the CST divided the area into grids and each department deployed technicians in protective gear to get a visual.?

Standard operating procedure for the CST is to deploy a two-man team on a Gator who will outline a perimeter and set up air monitoring equipment. Next they collect samples and report their findings to the incident commander.

?We picked up the grackles and examined them inside the glove box,? she said. When asked what the glove box was, she replied: ?The mobile laboratory has a small pass through door allowing for samples to be placed inside the lab. To protect the environment inside the lab, the inside door will only provide access to a glass negative pressure glove box, containing two holes with large gloves. Personnel will place their hands and arms inside the gloves and thus be able to work on samples without the risk of contamination to themselves or the lab.?

MAJ Jackson continued: ?What was so amazing, was that the dissection of the birds was performed right there on site inside the glove box?. The veterinarian was from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, a qualified forensic scientist, who conducted his assessment inside the 6th CST?s rolling laboratory on site.

The heart, gizzards, lower part of the intestines, feathers and swabs were collected and within hours, the team was able to report that no chemicals or other hazardous material was found inside or on the birds. Split samples were also sent to A&M and a national animal laboratory in Ames, Iowa, for further examination. These findings will not be known for days or weeks.

While the team waited for the CST lab results, other team members assisted the police with roof-top searches, because MAJ Jackson explained: ?There is a difference in the layers in the atmosphere when you monitor the air.?

Here again, nothing indicated that the air was hazardous to the public.

The interagency response on Jan. 8th to the city of Austin by the people from Austin, demonstrated that the days of insufficient communication and uncooperative agencies are long gone and life returned to normal for most Austenites in short order.

yielddude · Jan 18, 2007

Re: Dead Birds Close Downtown Austin (TX)

No Cause Yet On Mysterious Bird Deaths

Jan 18, 2007 11:31 AM EST

It looks like we'll have to wait a little longer to find out what caused the mysterious bird deaths downtown. Last Monday, more than 60 birds turned up dead along Congress Avenue.

Texas A&M has released the results of their study on the birds to the city.

However, city leaders have not yet released that information to KXAN.

We expect to bring those answers to you some time this week.

source KXAN.com

hawkeye · Jan 18, 2007

Re: Dead Birds Close Downtown Austin (TX)

why the delay? I thought the birds were just tired and dropped out of the sky.

rockyman · Jan 18, 2007

Re: Dead Birds Close Downtown Austin (TX)

so the city has the info and is "hoarding" it? I thought only WHO did that

4-ABBA · Jan 18, 2007

Re: Dead Birds Close Downtown Austin (TX)

If poisoning was a factor, would examination of birds' digestive tract contents have shown that very quickly?

Niko · Jan 19, 2007

Re: Dead Birds Close Downtown Austin (TX)

Parasites, cold weather blamed for dead birds in Austin
AUSTIN -- Three aviary pathologists at Texas A and M University have independently concluded that parasites and a 10-degree drop in temperature were to blame for the deaths last week of 63 birds in Austin that briefly sparked fears of a public health threat, a scientist said Thursday.
"We eliminated our biggest concern: that there was a toxin or something that might be transmitted to humans," said Dr. Lelve G. Gayle, the executive director of the Texas Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory. "These birds were sick and stressed from parasites and then there was this sudden drop in temperature and that's what pushed them over the cliff."The night the birds died, temperatures dropped from about 50 degrees to 40 degrees in six hours. The birds, which were mostly grackles, had parasites in their muscles, tissues and brains. None had food in their crops or gizzards, indicating they hadn't eaten in the previous 24 to 36 hours, Gayle said."We found no evidence that anyone should be concerned about a public health issue," Gayle said.Police shut down a 10-block stretch of Congress Avenue in the heart of downtown Austin for several hours Jan. 8. The closure _ on the eve of the state's 80th legislative session _ came after the birds were found overnight along Congress between Sixth and Eighth streets. There were no reports of humans harmed. Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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[SIZE=+2]Experts: Parasites, bacteria caused birds' deaths

[/SIZE] [SIZE=-1]12:45 AM CST on Friday, January 19, 2007

[/SIZE] [SIZE=-1]KVUE.com[/SIZE] Veterinary experts Thursday told KVUE News parasites were the primary cause behind the deaths of dozens of birds in downtown Austin early last week.
Sixty-five bird carcasses were found along Congress Avenue between Sixth and Eighth streets January 8. Officials closed a 10-block area as a precaution until further testing could be done on the birds.

KVUE News
Crews clean up along Congress Avenue on January 8th after dozens of dead birds are found.

Some of the birds were sent to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Texas A&M University.
Dr. Lelve G. Gayle, executive director of the Texas Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory in College Station, some of the birds were infected with parasites, while others had a low grade bacterial infection. They believe the birds were weakened and when the temperatures dropped overnight, their bodies could not handle the stress.
No public health concerns were uncovered.
The dead birds consisted of grackles, sparrows and pigeons.

http://www.kvue.com/news/local/stories/011807kvuedeadbirds-cb.5296f8bc.html

cozodapo · Jan 19, 2007

Re: Dead Birds Close Downtown Austin (TX)

One comment I have on this outbreak is how LITTLE reference was made to the chance that it might be birdflu. Certainly public health officials have a very delicate task in presenting to the public important information without causing general panic. It seems to me the Austin situation was a wasted opportunity to illustrate to the general public what a birdflu outbreak might look like and how they would respond-- indeed the media would have done well to present a minute by minute update of the collection, testing and evaluation of the situation so that the public can get some idea of what is involved. Reality TV could have done a great service here.

I think it is clear that no govt at this time can do very much to protect all its citizens with vaccines/drugs etc. the next best thing is information about how they can help themselves (which includes how they can make it easier for public servants to get on with their job by staying out of the way during a crisis).

Dead Birds Close Downtown Austin (TX)

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