Regulators identify type of Tennessee bird flu
The virus that led to the outbreak of bird flu in Lincoln County, Tenn., has been identified by federal regulators and is not the type that affected China and caused deaths in humans, officials said Tuesday.
The Lincoln County virus is H7N9 of North American wild bird lineage, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Also, officials said no additional poultry within the surveillance area that’s about two hours west of Chattanooga have shown signs of illness. Some 73,500 birds had to be culled over the weekend from the farm that produces chickens for Tyson Foods.
As a result of the outbreak, South Korea’s agriculture ministry already banned shipments of poultry and eggs from the U.S. unless they’ve been heat treated. Canada and Japan also have placed restrictions on shipments.