Deadly Bird Flu Virus Found in Britain

LONDON (AP) - Officials confirmed Saturday that the H5N1 strain of bird flu had been found in turkeys on a commercial farm - Britain's first mass outbreak of the disease that has ravaged Asia's poultry stocks and killed more than 160 people worldwide.

The virus strain that killed about 2,500 turkeys on the British poultry farm was identified as the highly pathogenic Asian strain, similar to a virus found in Hungary in January, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said.

It was the first time the deadly H5N1 strain was found on a British farm.

Also on Saturday, the World Heath Organization confirmed Nigeria's first human death from the strain. Nigerian health officials on Wednesday said several people had apparently contracted the virus, including a young woman who later died.

http://apnews.myway.com/article/20070203/D8N2G1I80.html