December 14 New highly pathogenic avian influenza cases appeared in Japan and South Korea on the 13th, raising public concerns about the continued spread of the avian influenza pandemic.
On the same day, the government of Shiga Prefecture of Japan confirmed that a chicken farm in Higakojiang City detected the H5 subtype highly pathogenic avian influenza virus. Shiga Prefecture thus became the 10th place in Japan’s 47 prefectures to have bird flu.
According to the local government, the chicken farm reported more than 50 suspected deaths from illness on the 12th. After a simple test on the 12th and a polymerase chain reaction test on the 13th, the quarantine department determined that the chicken died because of the H5 subtype avian influenza virus.
Relevant departments have begun to kill about 11,000 chickens raised by the chicken farm and investigate six other chicken farms within a radius of 10 kilometers. The local government has set up several disinfection points nearby to disinfect vehicles passing there.
Kyodo News Agency reported that the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Aquaculture held an emergency meeting on this day to discuss how to help Shiga Prefecture cope with the avian influenza pandemic.
Two days ago, Okayama Prefecture also announced the discovery of avian influenza pandemic and asked the Self-Defense Forces for help. The outbreak in Okayama Prefecture was later determined to be caused by the H5N8 highly pathogenic avian influenza virus.
Japan’s first bird flu case this winter appeared in Kagawa Prefecture in early November, and Fukuoka, Hyogo, Miyazaki, Nara, Hiroshima, Wakayama and Oita followed. These prefectures are mainly concentrated in western Japan.
On the same day, two cases of H5N8 avian influenza were detected at two duck farms in Lingyan County, South Jeolla Province, South Korea, located 384 kilometers south of the capital Seoul. According to Yonhap, this is the 11th and 12th highly pathogenic avian influenza case in South Korea this winter.
South Korean Prime Minister Ding Se-kyun said on the 11th that it is now the “key node” to curb the spread of the avian influenza pandemic to the whole country. According to the data released by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Livestock and Food of South Korea, as of the 11th, South Korea has killed more than 4.4 million poultry in infected farms.
South Korea’s Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Livestock and Food reported at the end of October that the highly pathogenic avian influenza virus reappeared in South Korea after 32 months, and wild bird feces collected from Cheon’an City, 92 kilometers south of Seoul were detected.
