Nov 13 : With officials confirming an outbreak of the H5 strain of bird flu in a farm in eastern Britain, 5,000 turkeys, geese and ducks were to be culled later Tuesday.

According to the Department of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), whether the outbreak was the H5N1 strain — which is potentially dangerous to humans and has killed up to 200 people around the world — is not yet known.

“Full confirmation of results, including whether or not this is H5N1 and whether the strain is high or low pathogenic will follow,” DEFRA said in a statement.

A three-km protection zone and a 10-km surveillance zone have been set up around the farm in Diss, 160 km north-east of London, the DEFRA said and added that all 5,000 poultry — turkeys, geese and ducks — on the farm would be slaughtered.

In February this year, there was an outbreak of the H5N1 strain at a turkey farm, forcing the culling of 160,000 birds in Suffolk, also in eastern Britain.

In Europe, the H5N1 virus has been found in Britain, the Czech Republic, Hungary, France, and Germany this year.

According to World Health Organisation, the virus has killed 206 people worldwide since 2003, most of them in Asia, and millions of birds have either died following infection or been culled.(DPA / IANS)

Tags:Bird-Flu