Bird flu outbreak in Pakistan zoo
Pastor Dale Morgan
Bird flu outbreak in Pakistan zoo*
An outbreak of the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu has killed at least
four peacocks and a goose in the Pakistani capital, Islamabad, officials
say.
A report said the Marghzar zoo has been shut down temporarily and
authorities have been vaccinating birds.
Earlier this month the virus was found in chickens in nearby Rawalpindi.
Bird flu normally only infects birds and though it can be contracted by
humans, scientists say the chances are extremely low.
Mohammad Afzal of Pakistan's Ministry of Agriculture told the Reuters
news agency that tests conducted on the dead birds at the Marghzar zoo
had found "they were all positive for H5N1".
The H5N1 virus does not at present pose a large-scale threat to humans,
as it cannot pass from one person to another.
However, experts fear the virus could mutate and in its new form trigger
a flu pandemic, potentially putting millions of human lives at risk.
Last March H5N1 was found in north-west Pakistan, India and Afghanistan.