Some 17,000 Chickens Killed in Taiwan Amid Bird Flu Outbreak

Almost 16,800 chickens were killed in a farm located in western's Taiwanese Yunlin County after an outbreak of an avian influenza, more commonly known as bird flu, local media reported Thursday.

BEIJING (Sputnik) — The outbreak of the H5N2 avian influenza virus was registered at the Yuanchang rural township, the Taiwanese Central News Agency (CNA) reported, citing a local veterinarian center.

The media outlet added that during the last 12 days the bird flu had been registered at five farms of the county.

Bird flu is the disease endemic in Asia. When detected in domestic poultry, authorities typically respond by killing thousands of birds in the area to prevent an epidemic.