According to the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, two cases of bird flu have been confirmed in a chicken farm. 1,100 birds have died and 112,000 will be slaughtered.
While the last case of bird flu recorded in Japan dates from March 2011, a little more than 3 years later, the alert against this viral threat has just been launched. Indeed, this Sunday, April 13, Tokyo has just confirmed the presence of the bird flu virus in Kumamoto prefecture. After obtaining the results of tests carried out in a farm of 56,000 chickens, the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture is now confirming the presence of the H5 strain. Saturday the owner of this farm in the south of the archipelago, had reported a sudden increase in the number of dead poultry.
Reinforced health measures and 112,000 chickens to be slaughtered
After the confirmation of these cases of bird flu, the Japanese health authorities have therefore announced their intention to slaughter the other 56,000 birds held by the same operator on another farm, because of the risk of contamination. Since Saturday, the local authorities had also already banned the transport or movement of animals from the two incriminated farms and neighboring farms. Disinfection operations have been set up within the farms, but also for all vehicles circulating in the vicinity in order to quickly contain the epidemic.
A persistent presence of the disease in Asia
This Japanese alert is also an opportunity to remind people that avian flu is a persistent disease in Asia. The Japanese authorities have also warned the country’s breeders against the risk of infection, recalling the presence of this type of virus, especially in the neighboring country, South Korea. Last March, China had also notified the WHO of eight new cases of infection with the avian influenza A (H7N9) virus and the south of the country had also reported four recent deaths of people in contact with poultry. Nationally in China, the H7N9 virus has already infected more than 120 people this year, 36 of whom have died.
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