Chinese
authorities are culling thousands of chickens after an outbreak of the
highly pathogenic H5N1 strain of bird flu in Hunan Province, which
neighbors the coronavirus-hit province of Hubei.
The Ministry of
Agriculture and Rural Affairs said on Saturday that 4,500 chickens had
died of avian flu caused by the H5N1 virus at a farm in the city of
Shaoyang.
The authorities have culled about 17,800 birds to prevent the spread of the disease.
The H5N1 type of bird flu virus is known to infect humans and cause serious symptoms.
Last year, an outbreak of the same strain was reported at a poultry farm in northeastern Liaoning Province.
A man infected with the virus reportedly died in the inland province of Sichuan in 2015.
Chinese
authorities are on high alert in response to the bird flu outbreak
given the continuing spread of the new coronavirus among humans.