Fri, Oct 21, 2005 page1

• COA confirms bird-flu discovery

  FIRST CASES Tests of dead birds that were smuggled in from China found they were infected with the H5N1 virus, but officials said the risk of an outbreak was low

  • By Jean Lin and Mo Yan-chih / STAFF REPORTERS
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  Eight of the 1,037 birds that were smuggled into Taiwan from China on a ship have tested positive for the deadly H5N1 bird flu virus, but an outbreak is unlikely as they have been seized and destroyed, officials said yesterday.

  At a press conference yesterday, Council of Agriculture (COA) officials said that eight of 276 dead birds discovered on a Panama-registered ship by the Taiwan Coast Guard in Taichung Harbor on Oct. 14 were tested and found to be carrying the H5N1 virus.

  The 1,037 birds on board were smuggled from China last week, raising concerns over the risk of bird flu being brought to Taiwan.

  

  With a possible outbreak of avian flu looming, some healthcare workers wearing isolation gowns participate in a ceremony announcing the establishment of Taipei City's ``disease prevention and control mobilization corps'' yesterday at Taipei Municipal Hoping Hospital.

  PHOTO: CNA

  Officials said they did not know where the ship was heading, but had received information about it from an undisclosed source.

  Nineteen types of birds were found on board the ship, with three types -- myna birds, black-naped orioles and Chinese nightingales -- found to be carrying the H5N1 virus.

  According to Chao Parn-hwa (趙磐華), director of the Animal Health Research Institute, eight of the 276 dead birds were sent to the institute for inspection.

  All eight were found to have the H5N1 virus, Chao said.

  Meanwhile, noting that the birds were smuggled from China, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs last night called on Beijing to adopt transparent measures in its actions against bird-flu to avoid becoming a "loophole" in other countries' efforts to combat outbreaks.

  In Taichung, one crewmember from the ship, a Chinese national, is in quarantine and is being interrogated. The remaining 24 crewmembers left Taiwan with the ship on Monday.

  Officials said that the quarantined crewmember has no symptoms at the moment and is taking Tamiflu, the most effective bird-flu medication available.

  A 40-person team that searched the ship and destroyed the birds was not quarantined, as team members had worn protective gear and did not come in direct contact with the infected birds, officials said. But they are being monitored as a precaution, the officials added.

  Watson Sung (宋華聰), director-general of the Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine, said that the bureau will combat animal smuggling and advises the public to call 0800-039-131 or 118 to report smuggling to the coast guard.

  Smugglers face up to three years imprisonment and a NT$150,000 fine. Officials are considering tightening the smuggling law.

  "All the birds on board the ship have been destroyed. Bird flu has not spread into Taiwan and we are not an infected zone," Sung said.

  Meanwhile, as part of efforts to combat a possible avian flu outbreak, Taipei Municipal Hospital yesterday announced the establishment of a "vanguard team" of 108 hospital staff that will be stationed at Hoping Hospital should an outbreak occur.

  The 108 doctors, nurses and other hospital staff from six municipal hospitals will be stationed at Hoping Hospital, which has been designated the anti-avian flu center for the city.

  Officials hope to gain from the hospital's experience during the SARS outbreak of 2003.

  At a ceremony to announce the team's establishment, Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) said the city has been working on the preventative measures for more than six months and he hoped that with the team, the city would be able to prevent situations such as the SARS outbreak from happening.

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