Bird flu cases rise as farmers come under scrutiny
Kathimerini, Greece
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Poultry owner fined 6,000 euros for allowing chickens to roam outside freely .
Two more cases of deadly bird flu were confirmed yesterday in wild swans found in Greece, taking the total to six, as authorities slapped a heavy fine on a poultry farmer for not locking up his flock amid fears the disease could spread to chickens.
The Agricultural Ministry said yesterday that a European Union laboratory in England had confirmed that the two birds, both from northern Greece, had tested positive for the H5N1 strain of avian flu, which has killed some 90 people, mostly in Asia.
Quarantines have been set up in the areas where bird flu has been found and checks are being made on poultry farms within a 10-kilometer radius.
Poultry farmers have been ordered not to allow their flocks to roam freely and authorities were keen to show yesterday that they would clamp down on any offenders.
feb 17, 2006
Kathimerini, Greece
______________
Poultry owner fined 6,000 euros for allowing chickens to roam outside freely .
Two more cases of deadly bird flu were confirmed yesterday in wild swans found in Greece, taking the total to six, as authorities slapped a heavy fine on a poultry farmer for not locking up his flock amid fears the disease could spread to chickens.
The Agricultural Ministry said yesterday that a European Union laboratory in England had confirmed that the two birds, both from northern Greece, had tested positive for the H5N1 strain of avian flu, which has killed some 90 people, mostly in Asia.
Quarantines have been set up in the areas where bird flu has been found and checks are being made on poultry farms within a 10-kilometer radius.
Poultry farmers have been ordered not to allow their flocks to roam freely and authorities were keen to show yesterday that they would clamp down on any offenders.
feb 17, 2006