First bird flu death in Nigeria
Pastor Dale Morgan
First bird flu death in Nigeria*
A Nigerian woman who died suffering from flu symptoms has tested
positive to the deadly H5N1 strain of the avian flu virus, says a
government minister.
It is the first bird flu death reported in Africa's most populous
country since the virus first emerged a year ago.
The woman, from the country's densely populated commercial capital,
Lagos, was among three people that died from flu-like symptoms recently.
Blood samples were taken from the three and sent to London and Rome.
Information Minister Frank Nweke Jnr told a news conference in Lagos
that this was where they were tested for the H5N1 virus.
The World Health Organisation says 158 people have died of H5N1 bird flu
since it's outbreak in December 2003 - most of them in South-East Asia
The UN had expressed concerns about the Nigerian government response to
the disease - as poultry are still being moved around by local farmers
despite an official quarantine and promised compensation for infected birds.
Cross-infection to humans is relatively rare and usually occurs where
people have been in close contact with infected birds.