Myanmar reports new bird flu outbreak

[Gert van der Hoek]

Myanmar reports new bird flu outbreak in private farm north of Yangon

Canadian Press

Published: Wednesday, June 13, 2007 Article tools


YANGON, Myanmar (AP) - Myanmar has detected the H5N1 bird flu virus among chickens on a private farm, an official said Wednesday, marking country's first outbreak of the deadly virus since April.

Than Hla, an official at the Livestock Breeding and Veterinary Department, said the virus was detected in a small farm in Bago, 80 kilometres north of Yangon, early this month.

"About 28 chickens died at a private poultry farm in the outskirts of Bago starting June 3," said Than Hla, adding that laboratory tests confirmed on June 7 that some of chickens were infected with H5N1.

About 1,000 birds from the farm have been killed as a precaution, he said. He did not specify the number of birds that tested positive for the disease.

The livestock department has also kept a close watch on the area, he said, adding that the outbreak remained under control because the farm was located away from other poultry farms and residential areas.

Myanmar had reported outbreaks of H5N1 bird flu in the outskirts of Yangon in February and April and had slaughtered more than 60,000 chickens and other birds. Before those cases, Myanmar last reported an H5N1 outbreak among poultry in March 2006. It has reported no human H5N1 cases.

The disease has killed at least 190 people worldwide since it began ravaging Asian poultry farms in late 2003, according to the World Health Organization.


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[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: Myanmar reports new bird flu outbreak

Myanmar calls on public to continue biosecurity measures against fresh H5N1 virus



The Livestock Breeding and Veterinary Department of Myanmar Friday called on the public to continue to take biosecurity against recent fresh bird flu outbreak, warning that remnant H5N1 virus is still striking the country.

The call came after some four new cases occurred at farms in three townships in Yangon and Bago divisions.

The authorities said the residual virus was found in Hmawby, Insein and Bago townships during the post-outbreak surveillance period which ran from May 7 to June 9.

During the period, a total of nearly 2,000 chickens were culled for risk prevention, the report said.

Bird flu, which broke out in five townships in Yangon over the period from Feb. 28 to March 31 this year, was claimed to have been contained and restrictions on transport and sale of chickens, ducks, quills and their products in those areas was lifted on last April 22.

The five townships were Mayangon, Hlaingtharya, North Okkalapa, Mingaladon and Hmawby.

The department has urged people to keep taking of biosecurity measures in poultry farms although the outbreak of the avian influenza in the city has been claimed to have been under control.

Warning that such residuals of the virus are still in existence, the department called on the people to continue to report unusual death of poultry if found and not to sell and consume and affected poultry and its products among measures introduced in order to control the residuals of the H5N1 virus and to ensure no recurrence of the virus.

According to the authorities, post-outbreak surveillance was carried out in areas three kilometers radius of the affected farms after outbreak containment based on serum and other samples of 44, 000 poultry.


According to official statistics, during the bird flu outbreak period, nearly 2,000 fowls died of the virus with 65,812 poultry from the affected farms and those nearby were culled.

In fight against the disease, Myanmar has been cooperating with experts from the Food and Agriculture Organization and USAID.


According to the Myanmar authorities, no human cases have so far been detected with bird flu virus in Yangon.

Source: Xinhua

http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/200706/15/eng20070615_384567.html