25 farms now infected with avian flu in British Columbia Canada

Main Category: Infectious Diseases / Bacteria / Viruses
Also Included In: Flu / Cold / SARS
Article Date: 14 Apr 2004 - 0:00 PDT

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The number of farms infected with avian flu in British Columbia have increased to 25, officials in Canada say. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency says that this was expected. The area concerned is in the Fraser Valley and Lower Mainland.

10,000 birds were infected on Monday in a farm outside the surveillance area, but inside the general control Zone.

Canada's Food Inspection Agency spokesman, Blaine Thompson said "There's obviously still some active virus out there that's still moving around and getting into these barns," Thompson said. "It's not surprising we found this one. There may be a few more through the pre-slaughter surveillance."

He said that as more birds are slaughtered the spread of the bird flu (avian flu) will slow down. He said that four flocks known to be infected are to be slaughtered immediately. So far, more than half a million birds have been slaughtered.

The Fraser Valley and Lower Mainland have been established as a control zone.

An order was signed Saturday under the provincial Emergency Program Act to allow officials to eradicate the infection and dispose of carcasses either through burying in landfills, incineration or biological decomposition at the Fraser Valley farms.

Farmers agreed and accepted that 19 million birds will have to be slaughtered in order to contain the outbreak.

Rick Thiessen, president of the B.C. Chicken Growers Association, said "We need to keep on with aggressive depopulation in order to contain and stamp out the disease. It's an enormous task. We just have to stay the course." That task includes separating the infected birds from the rest of the population, with the healthy ones sent to market.

Carcasses of infected birds are being destroyed at incinerators at the Greater Vancouver Regional District operation in suburban Burnaby and the Similko Mine between Hope and Princeton, east of Vancouver.

Others are being biologically decomposed at farms while more are being shipped in sealed containers to landfills in Chilliwack and Cache Creek.

Officials stressed movement of carcasses will be done in accordance with strict agency protocols to ensure health concerns are met.

But, say Cache Creek Mayor John Ranta and nearby Ashcroft Mayor Andy Kormendy, their landfill is not equipped to deal with hazardous and special waste.

Ranta said he's been unable to convince B.C. Agriculture Minister John Van Dongen not to send the birds to Cache Creek. He has asked for a meeting with Premier Gordon Campbell on the issue.

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