Two women confirmed with bird flu in Indonesia

Two Indonesian women from the same town have contracted bird flu and are being treated in a hospital, a senior health ministry official said today.

The women, aged 23 and 27, are in a “serious condition but seem to be improving”, said Hariadi Wibisono.

Both came from different parts of Bekasi, a town just east of the Indonesian capital, Jakarta, he said.

The source of the infection was still being investigated, he said, but initial inquiries showed both women had contact with poultry.