NAKHON RATCHASIMA: A public health official has denied as untrue a rumour that there was an outbreak of bird flu in Nakhon Ratchasima Zoo and a large number of animals had died.
Dr Teerawat Walaisathien, director of the Nakhon Ratchasima-based 9th Disease Control Office, made the denial on Sunday, referring to the rumour which cited a Public Health Ministry source as saying that the zoo had covered up the outbreak of the disease.
He said there have been no reports of an outbreak of the avian flu during this time. He believed the rumour was based on a report in 2017 that the virus was found in civets and the disease was believed to have come from animal feed.
Dr Teerawat said that after the flu was detected, the Nakhon Ratchasima Zoo worked together with the provincial public health office and officials from the Livestock Department, and the disease had been eradicated.
Since then, he said Livestock Department officials have checked carefully for an outbreak of diseases in animals at the zoo.
The 9th Disease Control Office is responsible for preventing epidemics in humans in Nakhon Ratchasima, Chaiyaphum, Buri Ram and Surin provinces, he said.
According to Dr Teerwat, his office is currently concentrating on providing rabies vaccinations.