Third case of H5N1 bird flu detected on mainland Australia

A third case of highly pathogenic H5N1 bird flu on the Australian mainland has been confirmed in South Australia (SA), local authorities said on Wednesday. SA Premier Peter Malinauskas said the deadly strain was detected in a migratory giant petrel found sick on a beach approximately 70 kilometres south of the state capital, Adelaide, on Sunday. It marks the first confirmed case in SA and the third on the Australian mainland, following cases confirmed in migratory birds found in southern Western Australia (WA) on Sunday and Thursday respectively. Authorities in WA earlier on Wednesday reported a third suspected case of the H5N1 strain in a bird found in the state’s south-west region, which will undergo testing for confirmation. Speaking to reporters, Malinauskas said Australia had been preparing for the strain’s arrival for several years. ‘We have a number of plans that we have been developing in anticipation of the possible entry of H5 bird flu into SA and we are now in the process of implementing those plans,’ he said. Before the first case was detected, the federal government allocated more than 113 million Australian dollars to fund Australia’s preparedness measures for an H5N1 outbreak. Minister for Health and Aged Care Julie Collins said on Wednesday that the reported case in SA was concerning but not surprising that infected migratory birds may have arrived along Australia’s coastline.