A top epidemiologist has warned New Zealanders to be vigilant after two bird flu incursions have hit an Australian state.
Avian influenza was detected on an egg farm in Victoria’s west, identified as the H7N3 strain. Hundreds of thousands of birds are set to be euthanised following the outbreak.
Meanwhile, a child who returned to Victoria from India in March experienced a “severe infection” after contracting the H5N1 strain but has made a full recovery. It was the first human case of H5N1 avian influenza in Australia.
Distinguished Professor of infectious disease epidemiology and public health, Nigel French, said the two incidents underline the importance of preparedness for an incursion of the virus into New Zealand.
“Bird flu requires a co-ordinated ‘One Health’ multi-agency approach to surveillance and response, given its importance to wildlife and domestic animals, and the potential for it to spillover and cause severe disease in humans,” French said.
This is the second time an outbreak of a strain of avian influenza has emerged in Australian egg producers in the past few years.
Early testing has found avian influenza in poultry at a Meredith egg farm. Poultry farmers, backyard flock and bird owners are urged to report cases of unexplained bird deaths to the Emergency Animal Disease Hotline on 1800 675 888, or your local vet. 👉 https://t.co/bq6qMabTvC pic.twitter.com/UtkYmkXRJz
— Agriculture Victoria (@VicGovAg) May 21, 2024
One of the strains in the last bird flu outbreak in Australia in 2020, which affected one in three egg farms in Victoria, was an H7 strain.
Samples of the virus have been sent to the Australian Centre for Disease Preparedness in Geelong for further testing.
The property has been placed into quarantine within a 5km radius and several hundred thousand birds at that business will be “depopulated”, said Victoria’s chief veterinary officer Graeme Cooke.
Meanwhile, no other cases have been identified through contact tracing in relation to the child who tested positive and although they developed severe symptoms, they have since recovered.
“This is a common scenario for human cases of bird flu – sporadic, severe infections with no evidence of sustained transmission,” French said.
French said despite these two reports from Australia, Oceania remains the only continent free of the strain of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI bird flu) that is sweeping the world, “causing large-scale mortality events in wildlife and poultry, and outbreaks of disease in cattle in the United States”.
“Aotearoa’s health agencies, the Ministry for Primary Industries, the Department of Conservation, iwi, community groups and the farming sector are working together to ensure any incursion of bird flu is detected early and an appropriate response instigated,” French said.
“The public are also encouraged to help with surveillance by familiarising themselves with the signs to look out for, particularly in wildlife, and what to do to report anything that looks suspicious of bird flu. Comprehensive information on what to look for and how to respond is here.”
French added that science was playing an important role in New Zealand’s preparedness.
“The Infectious Disease Research Platform, Te Niwha, is funding a project carried out by the University of Otago and ESR to develop environmental monitoring for bird flu in wildlife, and the Department of Conservation is trialling vaccination of endangered taonga wild birds,” French said.
Benjamin Plummer is an Auckland-based reporter who covers breaking news. He has worked for the Herald since 2022.