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update:Dec 27, 2006
Two deaths in two days from bird flu
Two Egyptians have died from bird flu in two days,
becoming the eighth and ninth victims of the disease in Egypt, according to the
Ministry of Health.
WHO regional adviser for communicable
diseases surveillance Hassan el-Bushra said the infected family members were
part of an extended family of 33 living in a single house in a village near the
town of Zifta in Gharbiya province, about 80 km (50 miles) north of Cairo.
Bushra said the family raised ducks in their home, and that the ducks had
been slaughtered after several had become sick and died.
The initial
bird
flu outbreak caused panic in Egypt, where poultry is a major source of
protein, and poor families frequently breed chicken and ducks domestically in
cities and rural areas to supplement their diet and income.
Eighteen people have been reported to have contracted avian flu since it
was detected in Egypt in February. The virus has spread to at least 19 of the
country's 26 provinces.
Editor WorldPoultry
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