Myanmar: 100 outbreaks of bird flu

A FAO representative said: "The situation is more serious than we imagined." The country "lacks scientific equipment and facilities to deal with the virus".

Yangon (AsiaNews) – Bird flu has exploded in Myanmar with more than 100 outbreaks across the country. Addressing a press conference, He Changchui of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said: "The situation is more serious than we imagined."

He said the outbreaks were mainly in the central district of Mandalay and the northern district of Sagaing.

He, FAO representative for the Asia-Pacific region, presented this information following the return of two teams who went on a fact-finding mission in the country, to get a full picture of the situation.

"It has not been easy to find accurate information because awareness is rather poor," he said. "The country lacks scientific equipment and facilities to deal with the virus and would need international assistance."

On 13 March, the government of Yangon confirmed the first case of H5N1 from November 2004: a breeding farm in the central town of Mandalay, 700km away from Rangoon. The number of cases rose to five. There have been no reported human victims of the virus in Burma as yet.

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• h5n1
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• fao