Commonground
Senior Moderator
Sep. 18, 2024 at 10:22 AM EDT|Updated: 3 hours ago
PHOENIX (AZFamily) — The Arizona State Fair is back this Friday, and the Arizona Department of Health Services wants you to be careful of bird flu.
Bird flu cases have been popping up all across the country, including in Arizona, with a little over 60 confirmed cases in the state.
The department reported the cases are primarily being found in dairy cows and poultry, which are animals that can be found at the Arizona State Fair.
Medical Director of Infectious Diseases Joel Terriquez said the department has been closely monitoring cases in the state and said the number of cases it’s seeing right now is not a threat to fairgoers.
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“We want to make sure that the appropriate protections and measures are taken, making sure, again, that you do not get close enough to those animals,” he said. “Animals are beautiful. You can definitely see them from the distance.”
The Arizona Department of Health Services provided the following safety tips:
“We always encourage vaccination for influenza, even though the influenza vaccine, it will not protect you against H5N1, but it will definitely provide that protection against the other viruses to avoid co-infection,” he said.
Again, the AZDHS is emphasizing there is no concern about bird flu at the Arizona State Fair this year. There have been zero human cases of bird flu in Arizona so far, and the department wants to keep it that way by making you aware.
The State Fair starts Friday, Sept. 20, and ends Sunday, Oct. 27.
https://www.azfamily.com/2024/09/18...bird-flu-cases-confirmed-among-animals-state/
PHOENIX (AZFamily) — The Arizona State Fair is back this Friday, and the Arizona Department of Health Services wants you to be careful of bird flu.
Bird flu cases have been popping up all across the country, including in Arizona, with a little over 60 confirmed cases in the state.
The department reported the cases are primarily being found in dairy cows and poultry, which are animals that can be found at the Arizona State Fair.
Medical Director of Infectious Diseases Joel Terriquez said the department has been closely monitoring cases in the state and said the number of cases it’s seeing right now is not a threat to fairgoers.
=snip-
“We want to make sure that the appropriate protections and measures are taken, making sure, again, that you do not get close enough to those animals,” he said. “Animals are beautiful. You can definitely see them from the distance.”
The Arizona Department of Health Services provided the following safety tips:
- Look at the animals from a distance
- Don’t touch the animals
- If you touch any animals, wash your hands right after
- Don’t drink raw milk
“We always encourage vaccination for influenza, even though the influenza vaccine, it will not protect you against H5N1, but it will definitely provide that protection against the other viruses to avoid co-infection,” he said.
Again, the AZDHS is emphasizing there is no concern about bird flu at the Arizona State Fair this year. There have been zero human cases of bird flu in Arizona so far, and the department wants to keep it that way by making you aware.
The State Fair starts Friday, Sept. 20, and ends Sunday, Oct. 27.
https://www.azfamily.com/2024/09/18...bird-flu-cases-confirmed-among-animals-state/
