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Bird flu outbreaks in Slovenia, Russia, Germany, Austria, Iran and Greece.Sunday, February 19, 2006Bird flu outbreaks in Slovenia, Russia, Germany, Austria, Iran and Greece. Here are the articles from the last week on meating place… A swan found dead last week in northern Slovenia was infected with the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu, Italian lab tests confirmed. It is the country's first case of bird flu. The swan was found near the northern city of Maribor, 9 miles from the Austrian border. Slovenia immediately declared a 6.5-mile surveillance zone around the area, in keeping with European Union guidelines. Meanwhile, the deaths of hundreds of thousands of birds in the southern Russian region of Dagestan about two weeks ago were confirmed to be due to the H5N1 bird flu strain. Authorities initially blamed Newcastle disease for the two incidents of mass deaths, which involved some 345,000 birds. ------ Two swans found dead on the Baltic Sea island of Ruegen have become Germany's first confirmed cases of the virulent H5N1 strain of bird flu. Germany's Agriculture Ministry said poultry within about two miles of where the dead swans were found would be tested for the virus. Agriculture Minister Horst Seehofer urged all farmers to bring their birds inside immediately to prevent contact with migratory birds. By Friday, the law will require all birds to be kept indoors. Austria also reported its first cases of H5N1, in two dead swans found near the city of Graz in the southern part of the country. As bird flu continues to spread, the European Commission on Wednesday approved more than $2.26 million for surveillance programs and added testing to ensure early detection of bird flu outbreaks. It also backed plans to suspend the import of untreated feathers from all non-EU countries. ------- The deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu has killed 135 wild swans on the Iranian portion of the Caspian Sea coast. They are the first cases of bird flu to be reported in Iran. The swans died at two locations in the Anzali mountains during the past two weeks, according to Iran's official Islamic Republic News Agency. Iran's Veterinary Organization said all meat provided under Health Ministry regulations in Iran was free from bird flu and not dangerous to humans, IRNA reported. -------- Greece on Monday confirmed a fourth bird sample — from a wild goose on the island of Skyros, about 75 miles northeast of Athens — has tested positive for the H5N1 bird flu virus. On Saturday, samples from three dead swans found within a 45-mile radius of the northern Greek city of Thessaloniki also tested positive for the H5N1 strain. Italy confirmed cases of H5N1 bird flu on Saturday as well, in five swans in the southern regions of Puglia, Calabria and Sicily. The instances mark the first time the virulent bird flu strain has been detected in a European Union country. There are no reports of human infections from the virus in these areas. |