Vietnamese authorities have detected the H5N1 avian flu virus in a
flock of ducks on a farm in the southern province of Ca Mau, a
government official said Friday [26 Sep 2008].

Hoang Van Nam, deputy director of Viet Nam´s Animal Health
Department, said inspectors had found on 22 Sep 2008 that bird flu
had killed more than 50 of 500 ducks on a Ca Mau farm.

All the ducks at the farm were ducklings under 45 days old, and had
thus not been vaccinated yet, Nam said.

Authorities have culled all the ducks at the farm.

"Bird flu occurs occasionally in Viet Nam," Nam said. "We cannot
extinguish it, but only limit its spread."

On 7 Sep 2008, the Animal Health Department announced it had detected
bird flu in a flock of 600 ducks on a farm in the southern province
of Ben Tre, adjacent to Ho Chi Minh City.

According to Nam, bird flu outbreaks have been detected in 26
Vietnamese provinces since the beginning of 2008, killing 5 people,
and forcing authorities to cull more than 60 000 ducks.

H5N1 mainly affects poultry and wild birds, but can infect humans who
have close contact with sick fowl. Scientists fear that if it spreads
unchecked, the disease could mutate into a form, which could be
transmitted between humans, leading to a worldwide pandemic that
could kill millions.

Bird flu has infected 105 people in Viet Nam and killed at least 51
of them since it first appeared in the country in late 2003.