Gov't strengthens quarantine inspection after Hong Kong bird flu outbreak

By Lee Joon-seung
SEOUL, Dec. 10 (Yonhap) -- The South Korean government said Wednesday that it has
strengthened quarantine inspections at airports and harbors following the
outbreak of bird flu in Hong Kong.
The Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said it has ordered
customs inspectors and quarantine service officials to carefully check people and
luggage arriving from Hong Kong.
"Particular emphasis will be placed on checking luggage for processed poultry
meat," a spokesperson said.
He added that all poultry farmers in the country have been asked to conduct
preventative decontamination of facilities and watch closely for any sudden rise
in bird deaths.
Regional authorities have also been advised to frequently decontaminate vehicles
used to transport birds and ask ordinary people not to visit bird sanctuaries.
The government speculates that past outbreaks in the country were caused by
migratory birds arriving in Siberia and China.
South Korea maintains a year-long watch on bird flu outbreaks, although the alert
level is heightened during winter.
No virulent H5N1 strain of bird flu has been detected in recent months, although
there have been cases of the less dangerous H5N2 types of avian influenza
detected in bird sanctuaries in the Jeolla region, located on the country's
southwestern coast.
The country has been hit three times with H5N1 avian influenza outbreaks, with
the latest outbreak occurring in April and resulting in a record 8.46 million
birds being culled at the cost of around 264 billion won (US$176 million).
Previous outbreaks took place in the winter months of 2003-2004 and 2006-2007.
No cases of human infection were reported in the country's latest outbreak,
although the government said 10 South Koreans were infected in the two previous
outbreaks without developing any symptoms. Worldwide, over 240 human deaths have
been reported in 48 countries.
yonngong@yna.co.kr
(END)