New cases of bird flu have been detected in a Romanian village outside the Danube delta where the deadly H5N1 strain was first discovered in October.
The first bird flu case outside the delta occurred on November 26th in the village of Scarlatesti, about 70 miles from the delta, and samples were sent to a British laboratory to determine whether it was the highly pathogenic H5N1 strain.
An official said domestic fowl had tested positive for the H5 strain of bird flu yesterday in the village of Ciocile, near Scarlatesti and close to two other villages where other outbreaks were detected over the past week.
The Danube delta is a major resting place for migratory wild birds - believed to be the carriers of the virus - and also a way station for birds heading from Russia and Scandinavia towards warmer winter climes in North Africa.
The H5N1 strain has killed more than 60 people in Asia since 2003 and led to the slaughter of millions of domestic birds. Scientists fear the virus might mutate into a form that could be easily transmitted between humans. The strain has led to the slaughter of tens of thousands of domestic birds in Romania.
Meanwhile, Ukraine reported its first outbreak of avian flu yesterday, in the Crimea peninsula.
Troops have been sent to patrol exclusion zones in the Crimea peninsula and the government has ordered the slaughter of all birds in them.
President Viktor Yushchenko told a ministerial meeting after a variation of the virus was detected in domestic fowl in six villages, that "emergency measures" had been taken, including the dispatch of Interior Ministry troops to the zones.
Ukraine's top veterinary surgeon, Petro Verbytsky, said a quarantine would remain in force for 21 days as millions of migratory birds were heading to Italy after a stop in Crimea. Ukraine had previously been declared free of bird flu.
Indonesia had its eighth human death due to bird flu confirmed by a Hong Kong laboratory affiliated with the World Health Organization, a senior Health Ministry official said.
The death of the 25-year-old woman raises the number of deaths from H5N1 avian influenza to 69, out of 133 people known to have been infected.
Experts fear H5N1 could mutate into a form that passes easily among people, like seasonal influenza. If it does, millions could die.