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Gov't confirms additional outbreak of bird flu
SEOUL, April 10 (Yonhap) -- South Korean quarantine authorities said Thursday that they have confirmed additional bird flu outbreaks in six farms in the southwestern part of the country.
The Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said the "H5 type" of avian influenza was found at five poultry farms in Gimje, in North Jeolla Province where the first outbreak was reported this year. It said one more outbreak was confirmed in Yeongam, in South Jeolla Province.
Gimje is located 262 kilometers south of Seoul, while Yeongam is 384 kilometers from the capital city and situated at the southwestern tip of the country.
This brings the number of infected poultry farms to 10 this year.
"All the latest outbreaks in Gimje were within 3 kilometers of the initial outbreak at the egg farm," said a ministry official.
He added that because the bird flu at the first farm was caused by the virulent H5N1 strain, the five new cases are likely of the same type.
"As a precautionary measure 183,000 chickens and ducks have been culled and buried in the Ginje area to prevent further spreading of the avian influenza," the expert said. He added, however that because the Yoengam outbreak is more than 100 kilometers away, only the 18,000 birds in the farm affected are to be destroyed. It said for the time being, all movement of birds and people within a 10 kilometer radius of the Yeongam brood hen farm will be restricted.
On Wednesday, the ministry said a duck farm in the Youngwon-myeon area of the city of Jeongeup had been affected by the H5 type bird flu influenza.
It said that while more detailed tests have to be run, there is a strong possibility that the duck in Youngwon died from the virulent strain.
Authorities are currently conducting tests taken on samples from several other poultry farms in both North and South Jeolla Provinces to see if they have been affected by avian influenza.
Expert said preliminary tallies suggested that losses so far reach around 7.5 billion won (US$7.6 million).
South Korea has been hit twice before by the disease, once in the winter of 2003-2004 and once in 2006-2007, resulting in considerable loss of property and a sudden drop in demand for poultry.
yonngong@yna.co.kr
(END)
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