CHINA / SOCIETY
Highly pathogenic H5N6 avian influenza outbreak reported in Yunnan
Published: Nov 22, 2018 07:13 PM
The highly pathogenic avian influenza subtype H5N6 virus was reported in Tengchong city and Luquan county of Southwest China's Yunnan Province on Tuesday, according to the website of China's Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.

A highly pathogenic avian influenza subtype H5N6 outbreak occurred at a poultry farm in Tengchong.

There were a total of 5,050 birds in the farm, and 4,420 died.

In Luquan county, which is more than 600 kilometers away from Tengchong,  5,400 out of 6,540 were reported dead from the outbreak.

The local animal disease control department has killed 1,028 birds to prevent the spread of the disease, and all the sick and dead birds have been handled properly according to the regulations.

The virus was first detected in  mallard ducks in the US in 1975.

The virus became highly pathogenic in 2013. At that time, the bird not only appeared with severe symptoms, but also died within 72 hours after contracting the virus.

The virus has caused multiple poultry epidemics in China and Southeast Asian countries. The largest outbreak was in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province in September 2014, infecting 20,000 geese and killing 18,000 of them.