Health officials in western Siberia are to begin in slaughter
of thousands of birds today after identifying Russia’s first outbreak of a bird
flu strain that can be fatal in humans. Doctors in neighboring Kazakhstan have
also (1) that a 19-year-old poultry worker (2)
admitted to hospital with (3) of bird flu, only to
be diagnosed (4) double pneumonia. The H5N1
strain of avian (5) has killed 60 people (6)
2fib in Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia and Indonesia, but has rarely been
found in birds or humans (7) Asia. Health
officials (8) that HSN1 is infecting migrating birds, which
could spread the (9) into Europe. Earlier this year China
registered the first outbreak of H5N1 (10) wild birds, some
of which (11) to breeding grounds in Siberia. These birds
could come (12) contact with others flying to Europe and
North America. Russia’s (13) began in the
Novosibirsk (14) , about 1,750 miles (15)
of Moscow in the Asian part of Russia, early last month, but the
veterinary service (16) the virus only last week. Valery
Mikheyev, the chief sanitary doctor of Novosibirsk, said that teams had been
(17) the (18) birds and supervising the
slaughter in13 (19) villages. He said, "The state of
(20) of the inhabitants of these areas gives (21)
cause for alarm. Up to 6,000 people are being (22)
per day. The virus seems to have (23)
only private farms that let (24) mix with wild
birds. Further outbreaks were registered in the Omsk and Altai regions, but the
strain had (25) to be determined, Russia’s Emergency
Situations Ministry said.