By the Numbers: South Korea Fightin' the Bird Flu
The South Korean government has been struggling with this bird flu thing. Early attempts to contain a fresh outbreak back in April were unsuccessful, and last weekend all the poultry in Seoul--about 15,000 birds--was killed in an attempt to curb the disease.
Now health officials are announcing plans to build a massive plant capable of producing a bird flu vaccine should the disease spread to humans, at a rate of 20 million doses per year. Which is great--though the plant apparently won't be finished until the end of 2009.
This isn't the first time South Korea has wrestled with the virus. The first local case was reported in 2003, and the country killed 5.3 million birds. During another spate of the disease in 2006-2007, only half that number were killed. In the past two months, South Korea has culled 7 million birds.
Worldwide the H5N1 strain of the bird flu has killed 240 people, according to the World Health Organization, and none of those deaths have been in South Korea. (Media scare says what?) Still, if you're in the country, probably shouldn't feed the ducks.
Related Stories:
· S. Korea to Build Bird Flu Vaccine Plant [Yonhap]
· South Korea Culls All Fowl in Seoul [Reuters]
· South Korea Travel coverage [Jaunted]
[Photo: riNux]
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