Denmark confirm nine more cases of bird flu

Denmark today confirmed nine more cases of birds infected with H5N1 bird flu, four days after the deadly strain was first detected in the country.

Tests on nine wild tufted ducks found dead on the island of Aeroe showed they carried the highly pathogenic H5N1 strain of the virus, the Danish Institute for Food and Veterinary Research said.

Authorities established a protection zone on the small island, located about 105 miles south-west of the capital, Copenhagen, when initial tests on Friday indicated the birds carried the disease.

Denmark confirmed its first case of H5N1 on Thursday, when a buzzard tested positive. Samples were sent to the European Union reference laboratory in Britain for verification.

The H5N1 virus has killed at least 98 people in Asia, the Middle East and Turkey since 2003, according to the World Health Organisation. Experts fear it may mutate into a form passed easily between people and spark a pandemic.