H5N1 Spread Along West Bengal Bangladesh Border
Recombinomics Commentary 09:34
January 17, 2008
Health and veterinary workers in Bangladesh have culled nearly 25,000 fowls after bird flu was confirmed at three poultry farms in the country, officials said on Thursday.
Bird flu has spread to the southern coastal district of Borguna and the northwestern Rajshahi district, a livestock ministry official said. Another infection was reported in Jessore, 275 km (170 miles) from the capital Dhaka.
"After the confirmation of bird flu, authorities have begun culling at the affected farms and surrounding areas," the official said. "So far nearly 25,000 chickens, ducks and pigeons have been culled in three districts."
The above comments describe additional H5N1 spread along the Bangladesh / West Bengal, India border (see satellite map). Although the border has been sealed, H5N1 confirmed or suspected outbreaks continue to be reported on a daily basis .
The outbreak in the Rajshai district was reported as a suspect outbreak earlier this week. Now it has been confirmed and is just across the border from the West Bengal government farm in Balurghat South Dinjapur, where H5N1 has been confirmed.
The new outbreak in Jessore is further south, but also along the border. It is about 20 miles from suspected outbreaks in Tehatta blocks in Nadia, which is also about 20 miles from the massive outbreak in Birbhum.
The multiple outbreaks in the two countries are being reported daily, raising concerns that the H5N1 is spreading rapidly along the border. The Indian OIE report on the outbreak in Birbhum lists the start date as January 4, 2008, but local villagers say domestic poultry began to die on December 18, 2007. The current culling is also being hampered by uncooperative villagers who are withholding or smuggling infected birds.
The rapid spread of H5N1 in the region raises questions about the evolution of the virus. Release of sequences from the current outbreak, as well as outbreaks from last year in India and Bangladesh, would be useful.
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