“A rough timeline of the H5N1 outbreak last week. Tuesday morning, January 30, 2007: 71 dead birds found on the turkey farm in Suffolk. Wednesday morning: 186 turkeys found dead. Thursday morning: 860 dead birds discovered. Friday morning: more than a thousand more dead birds found. Friday evening: veterinarians from the Department for the Environment, Food & Rural Affairs finally reach Bernard Matthews' turkey farm. Saturday: the European Union announces that the blood of dead turkeys from the Suffolk farm reveals the presence of the H5N1 virus, and this is the most likely cause of death for more than 2600 birds in less than 96 hours. Saturday and Sunday: a 2000 square kilometre quarantine zone (of varying levels of confinement) is imposed around the turkey farm, and more than 165 000 poultry birds are euthanised. The birds are gassed, their corpses incinerated.” http://birdflublog.blogspot.com
“The arrival of the virus in the UK doesn't herald the arrival of a pandemic. It likely isn't a harbinger of a threat to the public's health and safety. It is simply a reminder that the virus is spreading geographically and infecting more hosts, and as it does, it increases its opportunities to mutate. And that, someday, might unleash a pandemic.” http://afludiary.blogspot.com
“In one sense I'm glad when the media stage an avian flu uproar, because at least a little more information will seep out into the public. But ‘Suffolk-ation' smothers stories from elsewhere, and H5N1 is a global problem. So when the UK media start squawking like candidates for the next cull, my reaction is: What's happening in Indonesia? Anything new from Egypt? Lagos? Miyazaki? Because when our attention focuses on one spot alone, the virus is going to hit us somewhere else.” http://crofsblogs.typepad.com/h5n1
“For the past two years Britain has been stockpiling the anti-viral drug Tamiflu … United Nations co-ordinator for bird flu David Nabarro has said the presence of the disease in the UK is inevitable as it is ‘going to be in bird populations for several years to come. The way in which we'll deal with it is by implementing the well-rehearsed plan, which is to stamp it out at source. We've got to learn to accept that, not see it as a serious problem and just get on with normal poultry-rearing and consumption.'” http://theovergrownpath.blogspot.com
“CDC's Interim Pre-pandemic Planning Guidance . . . published Feb 2007 . . . This outstanding report is almost mandatory reading—all right then, mandatory skimming. The Pandemic Severity Index, which is similar to a hurricane numbering system, and the category-by-category responses show real federal leadership . . . At a minimum, bookmark it on your browser.” http://drbobgleeson.typepad.com/bird_flu
“I like my fried eggs sunny side up, boiled eggs soft boiled and poached eggs with a dippy yolk too, so eating eggs with a proportion of rawness is normal and enjoyable, in fact I wouldn't bother with eggs if they had to be cooked all the way through, which is exactly what the World Health Organization is recommending to avoid the bird flu in Nigeria . . . but not yet in the UK. How much longer for homemade mayonnaise and dippy eggs?” http://distributedresearch.net/blog/category/bird-flu
“Farmers, and factory farmers such as Matthews in particular, have gone to great lengths to protect their flocks from contact with the outside world and the threat of H5N1. All flocks over 50 birds must now be registered with the government, and movements of birds, especially from areas where avian flu has been detected, are strictly monitored. However, it is clear that despite measures that fall just short of anti-aircraft guns mounted on top of farm buildings, no scheme is foolproof. It is still not clear how the disease reached the farm near Lowestoft.” http://ducknewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2007/02/on-h5n1.html