ROSEAU (AP):
A DOMINICA health official warned yesterday that bird flu could hit the Caribbean in 2007 and said the government was preparing to combat the virus.
Government epidemiologist Dr. Paul Ricketts said bird flu could hit North America this year, then travel to the Caribbean "with the summer southerly migration of birds."
FINALISING PLANS
The ministries of Agriculture and Health are "finalising plans for a quick response," Ricketts added.
The H5N1 strain of avian flu has killed or forced the slaughter of tens of millions of chickens and ducks across Asia since 2003, and has been spread more recently by migrating birds to Europe, Africa and the Middle East.
There have been 184 confirmed human cases and 103 deaths linked to the virus; no cases have been reported in the Caribbean.
Veterinarians, environmental health officials and poultry producers from the Caribbean will meet in Trinidad on April 4 to discuss a regional response to the virus.
Ricketts also said the Pan American Health Organisation will host a meeting in Colombia on April 19 to consider a bird flu plan for Latin America and the Caribbean.
