SHANGHAI, April 5 (Xinhua) -- Authorities in Shanghai on Thursday closed a live poultry trading zone in an agricultural products market and began slaughtering all birds there after detecting H7N9 bird flu virus from samples of pigeon from the market.
Meanwhile, a person who had close contact with a dead H7N9 bird flu patient in Shanghai has been under treatment in quarantine after developing symptoms of fever, running nose and throat itching, the Shanghai Municipal Health and Family Planning Commission said late Thursday.
China's Ministry of Agriculture said Thursday it found the H7N9 virus from pigeon samples collected at the Huhuai wholesale agricultural products market in Songjiang district of Shanghai.
After gene sequence analysis, the national avian flu reference laboratory concluded that the strain of the H7N9 virus found on pigeons was highly congenetic with those found on persons infected with H7N9 virus, the ministry said.
The Shanghai municipal agricultural commission said it has ordered proper disposal of the culled birds, their excrements and contaminated food as well as disinfection of the market and vehicles that carried them and other things that have contacts with them.
The commission will also investigate and track where the pigeons came from, it said.
Meanwhile, the agency ordered the closure of the live poultry trading areas of two markets in Minhang district after samples there were found with H7 bird flu virus.
Shanghai reported two more deaths from the H7N9 bird flu Thursday,bringing the death toll from the new deadly strain to five around the country.
The city has reported six infections to date, and four have died, according to the Shanghai Municipal Health and Family Planning Commission.
Of the rest two, a 67-year-old woman was in critical condition and a four-year-old baby was recovering from mild illness, it added.
Snails that are as fat as geese
Feedback
RSS
