Bird flu outbreak may become epidemic<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The government warned on Wednesday that the current outbreak of
\nbird flu could become an epidemic as two more children died after
\nshowing symptoms of the disease.<\/p>\n
\"It's not an epidemic yet, but sporadic cases in parts of
\nJakarta. If things worsen it could become an epidemic,\" Minister
\nof Health Siti Fadilah Supari said.<\/p>\n
She was speaking to reporters after announcing that an initial
\nlocal test on a five-year-old girl, who died on Wednesday after
\nsuffering from bird flu symptoms, was negative for the virus. She
\nsaid more local testing needed to be done, while blood samples
\nwould also be sent to a laboratory in Hong Kong for confirmation.<\/p>\n
In another possible case a two-year-old girl died at Jakarta's
\nChristian PGI Hospital after a high fever and respiratory
\nproblems.<\/p>\n
Four Indonesians are confirmed to have died since July from
\nthe highly pathogenic H5N1 strain of bird flu. Nine others are
\nnow being treated at Sulianti Saroso Infectious Diseases Hospital
\nin Jakarta. The authorities are still waiting for the test
\nresults.<\/p>\n
Siti said that more victims could emerge as the authorities
\nhad not been able to determine the sources of the virus that has
\ninfected the victims.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Minister of Agriculture Anton Apriyantono said that
\nthe government would launch a mass cull of chickens in \"highly
\ninfected areas,\" but acknowledged that as of Wednesday no area
\nhad been declared highly infected.<\/p>\n
\"We will allocate (funds for the mass culling) whatever it
\ntakes, if it has become a necessity,\" he told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
The minister fired on Wednesday the ministry's director of
\nanimal health control Tri Satya Putri Naipospos for allegedly
\nfailing to monitor the spread of the deadly virus.<\/p>\n
The current bird flu outbreak in Indonesia has raised
\ninternational concern over possible further outbreaks of the
\ndisease, which has killed 64 people in four Asian countries since
\nlate 2003 and has been found in birds in Russia and Europe.<\/p>\n
Georg Petersen, the WHO's representative in Jakarta, said many
\nforeign experts were now helping Indonesia, including a high-
\nlevel delegation from the United States.<\/p>\n
\"Definitely the whole international community is very much
\npresent,\" Petersen told Reuters.<\/p>\n
The WHO is also working with the government to source new
\nstocks of the antiviral drug Tamiflu -- which can help against
\ninfection -- from India to bolster local stocks, he said.<\/p>\n
\"It's not very much, it's rather puny. They definitely need
\nsome more,\" Petersen said, adding that stocks being rushed from
\nIndia were less than 1,000 doses.<\/p>\n
Indonesia only has a supply of 10,000 Tamiflu tablets.<\/p>\n
The U.N. World Health Organization last week warned bird flu
\nwas moving toward a form that could be passed between humans and
\nthe world had no time to waste to prevent a pandemic.<\/p>\n
The government on Monday put the bird flu outbreak under
\nextraordinary status to focus attention on the outbreak in the
\nworld's fourth most populous nation.<\/p>\n
Besides Indonesia, bird flu has killed 44 people in Vietnam,
\n12 people in Thailand and four in Cambodia.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/bird-flu-outbreak-may-become-epidemic-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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