24 May 2006
New bird flu outbreak found in Amdo (Qinghai)
(Reuters) Chinese officials have confirmed an outbreak of H5N1 bird flu among wild birds in Qinghai province and in the Tibet Autono,ous Region (TAR). About 400 wild birds had been found dead "recently", Xinhua news agency reported, quoting the Agriculture Ministry. An outbreak of the H5N1 strain at Qinghai Lake (Mong: Koko Nor; Tib: Tso Ngopo) in May 2005 killed thousands of birds and that particular strain has since been found in Europe, Africa and the Middle East. "It is not unusual as it happened last year, but you need to be very careful to make sure people do not get infected", Roy Wadia, spokesman for the World Health Organisation in China, told Reuters by telephone. The governments of Qinghai and Tibet had disinfected the region where the birds were found, Xinhua said, adding no domestic poultry had been affected. State media said two weeks ago controls were tightened in Yushu county, about 800 km (500 miles) from the Qinghai capital Xining, where an outbreak of the H5N1 strain among wild birds was reported at the beginning of the month. At least 123 wild birds had been found dead.