The Chinese capital has stepped up its efforts to fight bird flu
by sending inspectors to farms, homes and migratory bird
sanctuaries to enforce disease prevention controls.
The World Health Organization (WHO) said that although China has
a strong political determination to tackle the problem and had
stepped up monitoring efforts, more needed to be done at the local
level.
The stepped-up veterinary checks came after the Ministry of
Health warned last week that a "danger of the fatal disease
spreading to human beings exists."
The country's top leaders also warned that the country faces a
"grave" threat from avian influenza, as both Asia and Europe try to
contain the deadly virus.
Officials in Beijing have begun checking chickens, ducks, and
geese and even carrier pigeons being raised as pets in the city to
make sure they are properly vaccinated or isolated, the Beijing
Youth Daily reported.
So far, around 98 percent of the poultry raised on Beijing's
farms has been vaccinated. Officials hope to increase that rate to
100 percent in the coming days, the report quoted city agricultural
officials as saying.
Poultry markets, slaughterhouses and zoos will also be
monitored, and special attention will be paid to farms near
sanctuaries for migratory birds, which are believed to have brought
bird flu to several countries.
In Beijing, security was to be stepped up at airports, bus and
train stations and at border crossings to prevent birds from
infected areas reaching the capital, said the report.
Municipal officials were also taking steps to ensure there is an
adequate stockpile of vaccines and disinfectants.
Southern China's Guangdong Province said it would set up a
surveillance system to detect animal diseases quickly and prevent
the spread to humans, the Beijing Youth Daily said in a
separate report.
Elsewhere, Britain and Sweden are among the latest countries to
report cases of the disease, while India and a host of African
states are preparing for the arrival of migratory birds that may be
carrying the virus.
The potentially fatal H5N1 strain of the virus has so far
claimed the lives of more than 60 human victims, with the latest
being a man in Thailand last week.
(China Daily October 24, 2005)