HONG KONG, January 29 (RIA Novosti) - An outbreak of the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu has been discovered in Tibet, southwest China, the Xinhua news agency said on Tuesday, citing the agriculture ministry.
The outbreak in the Gongga county on Friday left a total of 1,000 birds dead and a further 13,080 were slaughtered. "No human infection has been reported," the agency said. Local authorities have imposed quarantine restrictions in the affected areas.
The recent outbreak comes less than a month after another case in Turpan, in northwest China, killed 4,850 birds and another 29,383 were culled.
Although no cases of human-to-human transmission of H5N1 have been reported, scientists fear the virus could mutate into a strain that could pass easily between people, causing a global pandemic.
