Australia 'well prepared' for outbreak of H5N1 bird flu: Environment minister
Canberra, June 22
Australia's authorities said on Monday that the country is as well prepared as possible for an outbreak of the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu after reporting the first confirmed case on the mainland.
The federal government on Saturday confirmed that a migratory brown skua that was found in southern Western Australia (WA) on June 14 had died from H5N1 avian influenza, making the mainland the final continent to have a confirmed case of the highly pathogenic strain.
Speaking on Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) radio on Monday, Environment Minister Murray Watt said that the case was "not an unexpected development" and that authorities have spent two years intensively preparing for a potential local outbreak of the strain.
A second migratory bird, a giant petrel, was found sick in the same area of southern WA on Thursday and has also been tested for the H5N1 strain, with results still pending, but Watt said on Monday there has been no evidence of a more widespread outbreak or that the strain has affected poultry.
"If we were to have a widespread outbreak of this deadly strain, that would have a very significant impact on wildlife in Australia," he said.
"I can emphasise that we are as well prepared as we possibly could be for this, but it is a risk that we need to take seriously."
He said that members of the public had reported several instances of dead birds found in WA over the weekend to authorities and urged Australians to continue doing so, Xinhua news agency reported.
Avian influenza A(H5N1) is a subtype of influenza virus that infects birds and mammals, including humans in rare instances. The goose/Guangdong-lineage of H5N1 avian influenza viruses first emerged in 1996 and have been causing outbreaks in birds since then. Since 2020, a variant of these viruses belonging to the H5 clade 2.3.4.4b has led to an unprecedented number of deaths in wild birds and poultry in many countries in Africa, Asia and Europe. In 2021, the virus spread to North America, and in 2022, to Central and South America.
— IANS
Reader Comments
Good to see Australia taking proactive steps. As an Indian who remembers the 2006 bird flu scare in Maharashtra, I know how important early detection and public awareness are. Hope they manage to contain it before it spreads to poultry farms.
Australia's isolation has been an advantage so far. But with migratory birds arriving from Asia, it was only a matter of time. I'm from Sydney and follow health updates. The authorities seem competent, but I worry about remote wildlife populations being hard to monitor.
As someone who lost poultry during the 2014 H5N1 outbreak in Kerala, I can feel the anxiety in Australia right now. The economic impact was huge for small farmers. I'm glad Minister Watt is taking it seriously - the public reporting system is crucial.
Fair call from the Minister - "well prepared" is honest without being alarmist. But I wish they'd tighten biosecurity at airports. A single infected passenger bringing in contaminated meat could undo all this prep. Just saying for caution's sake. 🤔
The global spread of H5N1 since 2020 is genuinely worrying. I lived through the 2009 H1N1 pandemic in Delhi - right now it's just birds, but these viruses can jump species. Australia's preparation should include human vaccine reserves too. Let's hope containment works.
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