Suspect H5N1 Near Karachi Pakistan
Recombinomics Commentary 15:17
January 31, 2008
Following the large-scale deaths of birds at a local farm, poultry and health officials have suspected that avian influenza (bird flu) has crept into Karachi.
A senior poultry officer of the Sindh government said that he had been informed about an extraordinary number of mortalities of birds in a farm located on the right side of the Super Highway near the Toll Plaza, lending credence to reports that the much-dreaded bird flu had hit Karachi.
Sources in the poultry industry said on Wednesday that birds started dying at a farm in Gadap Town about four days ago. Earlier, the number of deaths was low and it was thought that the deaths were due to cold weather. But the situation became alarming when the birds’ mortalities started numbering in the thousands per day.
The above comments raise concerns about H5N1 in southern Pakistan near Karachi (see satellite maps here and here). H5N1 had been confirmed in northern Pakistan at the end of last year, but H5N1 near Karachi would represent a new outbreak. H5N1 has recently been confirmed in Bangladesh, West Bengal, and Tibet. However, there have been excessive poultry deaths in multiple countries and districts bordering West Bengal, as well as multiple locations in northern India.
The above description of a alarming increase in bird fatalities is consistent with recent bird flu outbreaks, which have been virulent and lethal for terrestrial poultry.
Information on test results from these birds would be useful.
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