# 1845
Up until this past week, we've heard very little bird flu news out of South Korea for nearly a year. Now, as they saw in March of 2007, they are once again facing outbreaks of the H5N1 virus in chicken farms.
South Korea has utilized particularly stringent culling techniques in the past to contain outbreaks. The current fear is that vehicular traffic may have spread this virus to as many as a dozen farms.
This update from the Associated Press.
South Korea reports fourth farm infected with bird flu, testing for deadly strain
The Associated Press
Published: April 8, 2008
SEOUL, South Korea: South Korea reported Tuesday that a fourth farm was infected with bird flu, deepening concerns the disease was spreading.
The first two cases were caused by the H5N1 strain that can be deadly for people, and tests were under way to see if two other poultry farms were struck by the same virus, the Agriculture Ministry said.
The H5N1 strain has killed at least 238 people worldwide since 2003, according to the World Health Organization.
The recent series of outbreaks are the first since to hit South Korea since March 2007.
A total of 380,000 birds have so far been targeted for slaughter to contain the disease.
President Lee Myung-bak visited a quarantine center in the area of one the outbreaks and called for thorough measures to halt the spread of bird flu.
Bird flu should not break out "as if it is an annual event," Lee told local government leaders in Jeongeup, about 290 kilometers (180 miles) south of Seoul, instructing them to fully investigate the cause, according to his office.
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