Jordan to disinfect bird farms to combat avian flu
Jordan will begin disinfecting all poultry farms on Thursday and import vaccines as a precaution to fight the bird flu virus, an Agriculture Ministry
By JERUSALEM POST STAFFJordan will begin disinfecting all poultry farms on Thursday and import vaccines as a precaution to fight the bird flu virus, an Agriculture Ministry official said Tuesday.
Jordanian authorities will spend 2.6 million Jordanian dinars to carry out the measures, according to Dr. Faisal al-Awawdeh, the ministry's deputy director-general for livestock.
Observation and control measures have begun in eastern Jordan's Azraq area where oases used by waves of migrating birds are found.
The government and the kingdom's Royal Scientific Society are observing birds entering the country and giving special attention to poultry farms along migratory routes, al-Awawdeh told The Associated Press.
Flocks of migratory birds enter Jordan usually from mid-September until March, said the official, but added: "they are not necessarily carrying the bird flu virus."
The Health Ministry's director of chest diseases, Dr. Khaled Abu-Ruman, said health authorities will import required vaccines and antibiotics to prevent bird flu's spread.
Elderly people, children and anyone with a low immunity levels will be vaccinated against the bird flu virus, while plans have been drawn up to quarantine contaminated areas over a 3 kilometer radius, Abu-Ruman said. Three major hospitals have been put on alert to deal with any cases.