The alarm was raised among the district’s veterinarians as 50 of 400 ducks belonging to Nguyen Van Binh were found dead at his farm in Nhan Thanh Commune, Yen Thanh District. Preliminary tests showed the birds to have been infected with the H5N1 virus.

In response, the veterinary department culled nearly 6,000 ducks in the locality and disinfected surrounding land. Remaining birds will continue to receive vaccinations against the disease.

The department is currently co-ordinating with local authorities to control the epidemic and prevent it from spreading. Four quarantine stations have been established to curb transportation of poultry out of the affected area.

The two previous bird flu epidemics in the province were discovered in the districts of Dien Chau and Hung Nguyen. All three districts are located about 40 to 50 km away from each other and are main poultry breeding centres for the country.