VietNamNet Bridge – “Following the law of the previous poultry outbreaks, the epidemic is likely to attack all provinces in the Mekong River Delta and may spread on the national scale next month”, said Mr Bui Ba Bong, Vice Minister of Agricultural and Rural Development at the meeting of the National Steering Committee on Bird Flu Prevention on the afternoon of January 9.

According to Mr Bong, the rapid booming of the epidemic is due to the favourable climatic conditions for the virus to spread widely. Furthermore, there remain many sick poultry having not been vaccinated yet. The uncontrollable transport of livestock on the drawing Tet holiday also makes the situation alarmingly risky. Therefore, the epidemic may spread nationwide next month.

A recent report by the Department of Veterinary Medicine showed that Kien Giang province is additionally listed into the region infected by the bird flu outbreak. Several communes in the province have witnessed the mass deaths of ducks and chickens positive with H5N1 virus.

So far, the disease has attacked 41 communes and wards in 17 districts of four Southern provinces namely Ca Mau, Bac Lieu, Kien Giang, Hau Giang. These provinces are put in an alarm and trying to find the best measures to minimize the risk of the epidemic spreading.

“In 2006, if a commune was found infected with the disease, the whole livestock of the region would be destroyed, which resulted in the waste of killing healthy ones. Therefore, no similar solution is applied in 2007. Only the infected flocks of duck are to be incinerated. Healthy and vaccinated poultry are allowed for transportation and consumption”, said Mr Bui Ba Bong.

However, livestock breeders should not be indifferent but are required to update all the information related to the disease via mass media and follow all the proper guidelines in sanitation, vaccination and transportation of the poultry.

(Source: VNE)