Medlov (Brno-venkov) – Veterinarians and firefighters are today culling the second half of the 12,000 turkeys kept on the Zelenka farm in Medlov, Brno, where an outbreak of bird flu was confirmed. Prisoners help them dispose of the poultry. The culling of the birds will continue on Wednesday. The director of the South Moravian Regional Veterinary Administration, Jana Kozáková, and Hana Čaloudová, who is in charge of the intervention on behalf of the State Veterinary Administration (SVS), told journalists.
The first of the three halls in Medlov was cleared on Monday. “6,000 birds were relocated to the rendering plant,” said Čaloudová. The liquidation of turkeys from the remaining two halls began this morning.
30 firefighters and eight inmates help with the work. “It’s physically demanding work, the prisoners help us bring out the poultry, it’s a service to the public. The prison service offered to help us,” added Kozáková.
The police also help in the intervention. They provide escort for trucks that take dead poultry to a processing plant in the Olomouc region.
The culling of the birds will continue into the evening hours and resume on Wednesday morning. According to SVS representatives, it is not yet possible to say whether it will last until Thursday.
Last week, the farm reported to veterinarians the death of approximately 50 turkeys out of 12,000 bred in Medlov. Examination of the collected samples confirmed bird flu of the H5N1 subtype, which veterinarians consider to be potentially risky for humans as well. Around the outbreak, it is necessary to define a three-kilometer protective zone and a ten-kilometer surveillance zone with veterinary measures, which, among other things, will limit the movement of poultry.
CR breeding health poultry South Moravian flu
Source: www.ceskenoviny.cz
