Bird flu hits Denmark’s domestic flock

Denmark has confirmed that the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu has been found in domestic birds. Exports of poultry from the island of Funen were halted immediately after birds on a farm there tested positive for the virus. The flock has been culled.

Until now the only cases of H5N1 in Denmark had been in wild birds. Much of the world is on alert for outbreaks of the flu – the Siberian town of Omsk is one of the latest to confirm a case.

The killer virus has now hit three continents. Officials in Denmark say the infected birds had not been kept under cover in accordance with recommendations.

The number of human victims has reached 122 people since 2003, according to the World Health Organisation, but so far the virus cannot be passed from person to person.

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