Confirmation of Bird Flu in Laos: Official

Tests have confirmed an outbreak of bird flu among chickens in Laos, according to a senior official of the Agriculture Ministry in Laos.

“We sent samples to Hanoi for testing and we have received the result that it is H5, but we don’t know the strain,” the official told Reuters. The official said there was no evidence that bird flu had jumped to humans in Laos, which borders Vietnam and Thailand where seven people have died from the virus. (Source: ABC Health News, Jan 2004)