Packages of chicken are sold at a market in Beijing, capital of China, Jan. 8, 2009. (Xinhua Photo) Photo Gallery>>>

    BEIJING, Jan. 18 (Xinhua) -- China"e;s Ministry of Agriculture (MOA) said on Sunday that no bird flu epidemics were detected in Shanxi and Hunan provinces after a two-year-old girl was confirmed to have been infected with the H5N1 strain of virus in Shanxi on Saturday.

    The girl, surnamed Peng, was found ill on Jan. 7 in central Hunan Province. Her grandparents took her to Luliang City of Shanxi on Jan. 11. Peng was still in critical condition on Sunday.

    Sixty-seven people who have been in close contact with Peng are under medical observation. No one has been found ill so far.

    Tests conducted in poultry farms and agriculture product markets in places where the girl had been to or around had found no abnormality, the MOA said.

    The ministry urged local veterinary departments in the two provinces to enhance check on major poultry markets and disinfect the markets thoroughly.

    China now faces "a grim situation" in bird flu prevention, threatened by frequent outbreaks in neighboring countries, the MOA has said. Other threats came from brisk poultry trade ahead of the Spring Festival and difficulties in taking prevention measures at loosely managed household farms.

    The MOA urged intensified check nationwide, especially in regions with high risk of bird flu outbreak, and timely disposing of poultry samples which were tested with bird flu virus.

Woman dies of bird flu in east China

    JINAN, Jan. 18 (Xinhua) -- A woman had died of bird flu in east China"e;s Shandong Province, the second death caused by avian influnza in the country in the new year, provincial health authorities reported on Sunday.

    The 27-year-old woman surnamed Zhang, who lived in Jinan, the provincial capital, fell ill on Jan. 5 and went to hospital when got worse, said an official of the provincial health department. Full story

China sets up nationwide testing network for bird flu virus

    BEIJING, Jan. 9 (Xinhua) -- An official with the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention said on Friday that a nationwide network for the testing of bird flu virus has been established.

    Shu Yuelong, vice director of virus control and prevention with the CDC, said the network connects 63 labs in 31 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities. Full story