Russia said an outbreak of bird flu in Chelyabinsk was dangerous to humans as teams of sanitary workers destroyed birds to prevent the westward spread of the deadly virus across its territory. The H5N1 strain of bird flu is behind the outbreak in Chelyabinsk, a city in the Ural mountains, the Emergencies Ministry said in a statement on Tuesday, adding that no cases among humans have been confirmed in Russia.
"Anti-epizootic and anti-epidemical measures are being taken to prevent the spreading of the infection among domestic birds and to exclude the possibility of the infection moving to humans," the added. Russia is battling to contain a bird flu outbreak, which has killed more than 11,000 birds countrywide. The top epidemiologist in the country has warned that migrating birds may export the deadly virus to Europe and the Middle East.