SEOUL: South Korea’s agriculture ministry said Thursday it has confirmed another case of the highly pathogenic H5N8 strain of bird flu in wild bird droppings, raising concerns over the disease’s possible spread to poultry farms.
It marked the fifth outbreak of highly pathogenic H5N8 avian influenza this year. The latest outbreak in Icheon, Gyeonggi Province, came just five days after a fourth case broke out in the same area, reports Yonhap news agency according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs.
The government banned the entry of people and vehicles within a 500-metre radius of the location where the fifth outbreak was reported. A transportation ban was issued on farms within a 10-kilometre range as well.
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South Korea has raised its guard against the disease since late October when it found the highly pathogenic H5N8 strain of bird flu near a creek in Cheonan, 92 kilometres south of Seoul.
It was the first avian influenza case in the country in 32 months.
— BERNAMA