City administration steps up measures to fight anthrax

JAKARTA (JP): The city administration has required vaccinations for all livestock coming into the city, after two people were reported to have died of anthrax in neighboring Bogor regency.

Head of the Jakarta Livestock Husbandry Agency Edy Setiarto said on Monday that city officials would examine the physical condition and health documents of each animal, particularly at slaughterhouses, as the Idul Adha Islamic Day of Sacrifice, which falls on March 5, nears.

"So far, we haven't found any infected livestock in the capital. However, if we do, we'll put them in quarantine and put them down," said Edy.

Anthrax (bacillus anthraxcist) has infected 20 residents of Tajur Tapos hamlet in Hambalang subdistrict, Citeureup over the past month, two of whom have died.

The local residents have been suffering from bleeding ulcers, which is identified as a specific symptom of anthrax, after reportedly eating either goat meat or beef, Darminto, head of the Bogor Veterinary Research Office, said on Monday.

Darminto said an investigation conducted on Jan. 29 found that Pandi and an unidentified boy, both of whom were neighbors, had died of the disease. The official added that five people have been receiving medical treatment in Cibinong Hospital since Jan. 29.

He suspected that the virus had been spreading since last November, but stated that his office had only received a report on the matter on Jan. 29.

He added that the inspection team had not found any anthrax spores in the soil samples taken from animal graves in the infected area.

"It was too late for us to inspect the infected area as the anthrax spores, the spreaders of the virus, had already been washed away by the rain which has been drenching the city lately," he told The Jakarta Post on Monday.

He regretted the sluggish response of the Bogor Animal Husbandry Agency in responding to the outbreak.

"The virus should not have infected the people if anti-anthrax vaccines had been distributed to the thousands of livestock rearers in the area from the beginning," he asserted.

Darminto said the disease has been caused by anthrax spores in the soil.

The virus normally requires 60 years to become locally extinct.

Darminto said many areas in Bogor were prone to anthrax, including Cileungsi, Jonggol, Bojong Gede, Sukaraja and Cariu.

He added that the virus, although deadly, could be cured by antibiotics such as penicillin.

Besides causing bleeding ulcers, the virus can directly attack the infected person's intestines after contaminated meat has been consumed, he said.

"In such a case, the infected person could die within only a few hours," he explained, adding that the virus could also spread by air.

Contacted separately, Musni, head of the animal health division of the West Java Public Health Office, said that his office had vaccinated only 1,000 out of some 4,000 head of livestock in Hambalang village, including both cattle and goats.

The regency administration has banned the transportation by road of livestock out of the Bogor area, especially from Hambalang village.

Head of the Jakarta Livestock Husbandry Agency Edy called on consumers to beware of anthrax-infected livestock and to buy animals only from authorized traders.

Edy explained that an infected beast commonly suffered from convulsions and a bleeding ulcer and would usually die within 10 days. Dark bloodstains normally marked infected meat, he said.

City residents consume at least 150 tons of meat every day. About 35 tons are supplied by the city-owned meat distributor PD Dharma Jaya, while another 45 tons are imported from neighboring countries, such as Australia and New Zealand. The remaining 70 tons are supplied by livestock-rearing areas around Jakarta.

According to Dharma Jaya president Prabowo Soenirman, about 70 percent of the meat is distributed to some 151 traditional markets across the capital, while the rest is sold through supermarkets and hypermarkets.

"I guarantee that our meat has been examined for anthrax, because we always require a beast to be checked before being slaughtered," said Prabowo.

Edy said his agency had prepared at least 45,000 goats and 3,000 cattle to meet the city's demand for meat on Idul Adha. (04/07/21)