According to reports yesterday and on Friday, Beijing, Shanghai
and Guangdong
are taking measures to prevent the spread of avian influenza, cases
of which have been reported amongst birds in Europe and Inner
Mongolia Autonomous Region.
Officials in Beijing have begun checking chickens, ducks, geese
and carrier pigeons to make sure they are properly vaccinated or
isolated, Beijing Youth Daily reported yesterday.
So far, around 98 percent of poultry raised on Beijing's farms
has been vaccinated. Officials hope to increase that to 100 percent
in the coming days, the report quoted city agricultural officials
as saying.
Poultry markets, slaughterhouses and zoos will also be
monitored, and special attention will be paid to farms near
sanctuaries for migratory birds, which are believed to have brought
bird flu to several countries.
In Beijing, security was to be stepped up at airports, bus and
train stations and at border crossings to prevent birds from
infected areas reaching the capital, said the report.
Municipal officials were also taking steps to ensure there is an
adequate stockpile of vaccines and disinfectants.
According to Xinhua News Agency on Friday, east China's Shanghai
is sterilizing the soles of all passengers entering the port by
sea, land and air.
The municipal quarantine authorities have destroyed and banned
imports of poultry products from bird flu-stricken areas, according
to the city's Exit-Entry Inspection and Quarantine Bureau's website
on October 17.
Spot checks on non-poultry imports to Shanghai have been
intensified. Poultry and other animal products from unaffected
areas are now also under strict scrutiny.
Southern China's Guangdong Province said it would set up a
surveillance system to detect animal diseases quickly and prevent
the spread to humans, Beijing Youth Daily said in a
separate October 23 report.
The moves came after the Ministry of Health warned last week
that a "danger of the fatal disease spreading to human beings
exists."
(China Daily, Xinhua News Agency October 24,
2005)