Kenya: Import of Poultry Banned After Bird Flu Outbreak
Nairobi
Importation of poultry and its products using the Lokichoggio Airstrip and roads linking Kenya to southern Sudan has been banned after cases of bird flu were reported in Juba.
Turkana district veterinary officer George Omari yesterday alerted Lokichoggio, Kakuma, Oropoi and Kalokol residents of the new measure.
Crisis in Sudan
The World Health Organisation also confirmed the report. The agency's officials operating in Juba, Southern Sudan, said four birds had died of the flu at a local farm.
However, no human cases were reported.
Dr Omari cautioned hotel owners to observe high standards of hygienic when handling poultry products saying domestic birds were at risk of contracting the disease and spreading it.
He also asked residents to report suspected cases of dead birds to the veterinary department.
The department has started collecting blood samples from birds in the area for testing at the Kenya Medical Research Institute (Kemri), said the officer.
"If some local birds will test positive, the department will kill all birds in the area and pay the owners," he said.
Dr Omari noted that the International Rescue Committee (IRC), a humanitarian health organisation operating at a refugee camp in Sudan, had started educating people about the disease.
He said public health officials at the airstrip had been alerted not to allow Sudanese crossing into the country to carry poultry and other related products into refugee camps.
He said poultry products that have not been vetted could spread the disease.
Veterinary officers said they had increased surveillance and set up a team to monitor the situation.
Nairobi
Importation of poultry and its products using the Lokichoggio Airstrip and roads linking Kenya to southern Sudan has been banned after cases of bird flu were reported in Juba.
Turkana district veterinary officer George Omari yesterday alerted Lokichoggio, Kakuma, Oropoi and Kalokol residents of the new measure.
Crisis in Sudan
The World Health Organisation also confirmed the report. The agency's officials operating in Juba, Southern Sudan, said four birds had died of the flu at a local farm.
However, no human cases were reported.
Dr Omari cautioned hotel owners to observe high standards of hygienic when handling poultry products saying domestic birds were at risk of contracting the disease and spreading it.
He also asked residents to report suspected cases of dead birds to the veterinary department.
The department has started collecting blood samples from birds in the area for testing at the Kenya Medical Research Institute (Kemri), said the officer.
"If some local birds will test positive, the department will kill all birds in the area and pay the owners," he said.
Dr Omari noted that the International Rescue Committee (IRC), a humanitarian health organisation operating at a refugee camp in Sudan, had started educating people about the disease.
He said public health officials at the airstrip had been alerted not to allow Sudanese crossing into the country to carry poultry and other related products into refugee camps.
He said poultry products that have not been vetted could spread the disease.
Veterinary officers said they had increased surveillance and set up a team to monitor the situation.
