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Third Foot-and-Mouth Outbreak Confirmed in UK
Foot and mouth disease was confirmed in a herd of cattle in Essex, southeast England, on Thursday night, taking the total number of outbreaks to three and confirming vet's fear that the virulent virus was poised to spread rapidly throughout the country.
The outbreak occurred at a farm in Great Warley, near Brentwood, two miles from the site where the first two outbreaks were confirmed on Tuesday.
Farmers were being urged to remain calm as efforts continue to trace the source of the outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease.
Strict hygiene measures have been adopted at farms and people have been told to avoid the countryside where possible, to help prevent further spread of the disease.
Kevin Pearce, spokesman for the National Farmers' Union, said vigilance not panic would keep the outbreak under control. Any contamination in the environment can be spread by people or vehicles or other animals.
As the disease spreads, a farm at Heddon-on-the-Wall in Northumberland, northeast England, has become subject to restrictions on animal movements, following suspected cases of foot-and-mouth thought to be connected to the Essex outbreak.
Two farms in Buckinghamshire and the Isle of Wight also have exclusion zones around them, and restrictions are in place at two farms in Gloucestershire and Yorkshire.
Hundreds more across Britain have been told to prepare for investigation by Ministry of Agriculture inspectors.
Hunting has been banned for a week and some local racing fixtures in Essex have been postponed.
Woodchester Park, a National Trust park near Stroud in Gloucestershire, has been closed to the public following a suspected outbreak at a nearby farm.
The government's chief veterinary officer, Professor Jim Scudamore, said such precautions were necessary because of the way foot-and-mouth spreads.
There was a serious outbreak of foot-and-mouth in Britain in 1967 - around Oswestry on the Welsh border. Nearly half a million cows, sheep and pigs had to be slaughtered and infected farms were cut off from normal life for weeks.
Foot-and-mouth, a viral disease which causes blisters on the mouth and hooves of livestock, is highly contagious but poses little threat to humans.
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