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| Europe |
| Possible Bird Flu in Finland |
| 2005-08-27 |
| Associated Press Writer HELSINKI, Finland Finnish authorities said Friday they had found a suspected case of bird flu in the north of the country. An Agriculture Ministry official said it was unlikely to be a case of the H5N1 strain, which scientists fear might spark a human pandemic. The ministry said the case involved a gull near the city of Oulu, some 370 miles north of Helsinki. Final test results were expected in three weeks. Authorities said it was the first case of bird flu ever found in Finland, but that details on the particular strain of virus were still unclear. Riitta Heinonen at the ministry said it was possible, but unlikely, that the case involved the H5N1 strain, the one circulating in Asia and in eastern Russia, which scientists are concerned about. There has not so far been a recorded case of the H5N1 strain in Europe. "A monitoring program in Finland has revealed a preliminary find of a bird flu virus in a gull," the ministry said in a statement. It added that the find would not prompt any special measures for the time being. European Union experts warned on Thursday that the Russian outbreak could spread west to Europe, and the executive European Commission called on the 25 member states to increase surveillance. In Vietnam, officials said Friday that bird flu has killed three rare civets born in captivity at a national park, marking the first time the virus has been reported in the species. It's made it to mammals. |
| Posted by:Jackal |