What we know about the H5N1 cases found near Esperance and the official response
Updated ,first published
Western Australia is “hoping for the best” but “preparing for the worst” after a second case of highly contagious bird flu was confirmed in a giant bird flu near Esperance along the state’s southern coast.
Prime Minister Roger Cook urged caution on Monday after tests confirmed a second case of H5N1 bird flu in Australia.
The country’s chief veterinarian, Dr. Beth Cookson said that although there is currently no indication that the disease has spread to other populations, there has been an increase in the number of reports from the emergency animal disease hotline.
At a press conference alongside federal Agriculture Minister Julie Collins and Environment Minister Murray Watt, Cook praised WA’s efforts to remain vigilant against any outbreaks.
“Western Australia has a large coastline that is particularly open to migratory birds, and from that perspective it’s very important to be absolutely vigilant in terms of early detection to make sure we can be prepared for any outbreaks of the disease,” he said.
“Hoping for the best, preparing for the worst, and being over-prepared here is key to ensuring we can respond to any biosecurity threat.
“My government has set up a helpline for people to report any concerns or activity they see involving local wildlife or agricultural animals to ensure we have the best opportunity to continue early detection and we want people to be vigilant.
“This is obviously a very worrying situation, but we are prepared for it.”
Cookson, WA’s chief veterinary officer, Dr. He said Michelle Rodan informed him that there are currently no signs of mass deaths in the state.
“We expect a baseline level of mortality in wild populations at any given time,” he said.
“What we are trying to do now in the early days of the investigation is to understand whether what has been reported through the public hotline is related to this normal situation or whether there are any signs of spread.
“I don’t have any information to suggest that there is a suspicious lab result or a situation with multiple mass deaths that would indicate a high level of suspicion, that’s all I can say at this stage.”
Cookson said authorities are prioritizing examination of the two reported birds to see if there is any evidence that the disease has spread to other susceptible species.
“So far we have no indication that the disease has spread to other populations, but this is the first step we need to take to determine whether these two migratory seabirds that tested positive can spread the disease to other birds,” he said.
Shares in Australian-listed chicken producer Inghams fell as much as 14 per cent in early trading on Monday after the company said it was locking down its Western Australian operations after H5N1 bird flu was detected in the state.
Inghams said in a statement that the company had implemented a “full quarantine” without non-essential access to its farms and processing operations in the state, which are more than 690 kilometers from where the infections were detected.
It was stated that no cases were observed in commercial poultry farming.
Monday’s decline was the biggest in four months, with Inghams shares down more than 23 per cent since the start of the year. It was stated that the company continues to supply poultry to the market as usual.
The H5N1 variant of the virus was first confirmed in a sick brown skua found on a remote beach near Esperance, about 700 kilometers southeast of Perth.
The giant bird became the second migratory bird to give positive results.
Watt said the federal government is aware of numerous reports of sick and dead birds, but it’s unclear whether they are related to bird flu or “the many other reasons why birds die every day.”
“There is no cause for alarm at this point that it is becoming a more widespread occurrence beyond these two birds,” Mr Watt told ABC Radio on Monday.
He said if Australia were to experience a widespread outbreak it would have a very significant impact on native wildlife rather than poultry stocks.
The species was previously detected on Heard Island in October, where an estimated 13,359 southern elephant seal pups died.
Australia has been preparing for the arrival of H5N1 for years, as the only continent not yet affected by the virus.
The federal government has developed more than 100 response plans for important areas and sensitive species and has invested nearly $100 million in preparedness efforts.
The discovery raised fears among scientists, conservationists and agricultural groups who point to mass mortality events and species-level population declines in overseas outbreaks.
University of Melbourne researcher Michelle Wille said Australian officials were preparing for the worst-case scenario, but international examples painted a bleak picture.
“Everywhere this virus has emerged has been truly catastrophic, there have been mass mortality events of wildlife and in some places we have seen species-level declines in population,” he said.
Industry impacts could also be significant, he said, noting that more than 200 million chickens have been culled in the United States since the virus arrived in the United States.
The public is urged to report and register sick and dead birds and marine mammals to the emergency animal disease hotline.
from AAP
