China confirms outbreak of bird flu

San Luis Obispo Tribune ^ | Mar. 16, 2008 | NA

[neverdem]

Associated Press

Chinese officials have confirmed that bird flu was to blame for killing chickens in poultry markets in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou, Hong Kong's health bureau Sunday.

China's Ministry of Agriculture notified the administration that the birds tested positive for the H5N1 bird flu virus, marking the country's fifth outbreak among poultry this year, Hong Kong's Food and Health Bureau said in a statement.

The Ministry of Agriculture also said on its Web site that last week's outbreak in Guangzhou killed 114 birds and resulted in the slaughter of 518 others. But it has been contained, the ministry said.

China, which raises more poultry than any other country worldwide, has vowed to aggressively fight the virus. H5N1 has killed at least 235 people worldwide, according to the World Health Organization. Scientists fear it could mutate into a form that spreads easily among humans, potentially sparking a pandemic that kills millions. So far, most human cases have been linked to contact with infected birds.

China has already reported three human bird flu deaths this year, including a 44-year-old migrant worker last month in southern Guangdong province. It has recorded 20 human deaths since the virus began ravaging Asian poultry stocks in late 2003.

[FoxInSocks]

Ah, just look at it as yet another fun challenge for the Olympic athletes to overcome this summer.

[neverdem]

micro ping

[Fox_Mulder77]

So Olympic athletes can’t eat the meat because they’ll test positive for steroids, they have to wear masks to avoid complications from polluted air, and now they’ll need to avoid the general population due to bird flu.
Wow, what a place to hold the Olympics.

[eyedigress]

Oh Heck, If my company gets word of this they will lose all hope!

[Bender2]

Re: China confirms outbreak of bird flu

Don't be surprised when China say over 200,000 died... of bird flu in Tibet this past week!

[Army Air Corps]

Don’t give the Chicoms any ideas...

[gridlock]

Who is going to want to go to the Olympics to sit around in a crowd of hundreds of thousands of people, some of which may have Bird Flu?

It is like the plotline of Rainbow Six without the foggers...

[dawn53]

We stayed in Guangzhou for a few months when my husband was there on a job assignment. The open market (Xing Ping) was the most unbelievable place I’ve ever been. All sorts of wildlife, including dogs and cats, are butchered and the waste just flows into open sewers. If I remember correctly, this is the city (and Xing Ping the market) where they believe SARS originated.

[tanuki]

Bird flu or ‘pork’ dumplings.

[metmom]

ping

[steve86]

But it has been contained, the ministry said.

Probably about like the subprime debacle "has been contained". A guvmint official told me so.

[Smokin' Joe]

ping...

[null and void]

So Olympic athletes can’t eat the meat because they’ll test positive for steroids, they have to wear masks to avoid complications from polluted air, and now they’ll need to avoid the general population due to bird flu.

Yeah, a real worker's paradise!

[purpleraine]

Where will the Tibetan team be quartered?

[Dad yer funny]

FR bookmark

[JACKRUSSELL]

(Please FReepmail me if you would like to be on or off of the list.)

[grey_whiskers]

Like, *PING*, folks.

[grey_whiskers]

Where will the Tibetan team be quartered?

Anti-China Sarcasm Torpedo^TM ARMED. FIRE!!

Don't get ahead of yourself.

They have to be drawn first.

[Ezekiel]

Chinese officials have confirmed that bird flu was to blame for killing chickens in poultry markets in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou, Hong Kong's health bureau Sunday.

That wasn't -- ooops, that *was* chicken.