Bird flu fears after death of ducks in Romania

Three domestic ducks have died of bird flu in eastern Romania, but authorities said they had not confirmed whether the birds were infected by the H5N1 strain that experts are tracking in the fear that it could mutate and spawn a human flu pandemic.

There are several strains of bird flu but only a few are deadly. Authorities strongly suspect that tests now underway in Britain will confirm the birds were infected with H5N1, Agriculture Ministry spokesman Adrian Tibu says.