Correction: WA H5N1 Avian Flu Case NOT B3.13, According to State Veterinarian
2nd news report on WA human Cases provides additional information on outbreak
Pasco egg farm workers infected with bird flu. 1st WA cases | Tri-City Herald
The infected chicken were in multiple barns in the Pasco area farm, and chickens in all but part of one building had been euthanized by Sunday afternoon thanks to the “very, very, very hard work” of farm workers, said Amber Itle, Washington state veterinarian. The HPN1 virus is so lethal in chickens that birds were dying before they could be euthanized. “This is extremely stressful for the workers and the owners,” Itle said. The carcasses are being composted in piles without being moved from the farm to prevent possible spread of the virus, such as by trucks that are not properly decontaminated, she said. None of the possibly infected eggs or chicken are entering the food chain, Itle said. State and federal officials are monitoring flocks for symptoms within about six miles of the infected site. Owners of commercial flocks also are required to closely monitor flocks in that zone and do regular testing. In the past, outbreaks of avian flu in chicken flocks have left egg shelves close to bare at some grocery stores near production facilities and led to higher prices on eggs elsewhere. …
BACKYARD BIRD FLOCK PRECAUTIONS Since avian influenza, or H5N1, was first detected in Washington state in 2022 two commercial flocks and 46 domestic flocks have been infected and bird owners are encouraged to use biosecurity measures outlined at poultrybiosecurity.org. The current strain circulating in Washington state is a poultry strain, not a dairy cow strain, Itle said. …
I prematurely implied that the appearance of H5N1 in a large poultry flock in a dairy dense area followed by a clinical picture in response workers very similar to that seen in CO meant that B3.13 was the likely agent. I DID NOT HAVE CONFIRMATION OF THAT KEY PIECE OF INFORMATION. I apologize for confusion and any aspersions those implications cast on Washington animal health officials or the dairy industry. It would still be prudent for enhanced surveillance of dairy farm employees and dairy herds given this virus’ presence in the area because no one knows that B3.13 is the only H5 strain able to infect dairy cattle or other livestock. However, in this case, it appears that the poultry were infected first.
We all look forward to CDC transparency in posting the complete sequences of the human isolate(s) to GISAID when available to better understand the relationship of this virus to previous poultry, dairy, wildlife, and human isolates.
John