No need to fear bird flu here, says D-G

Star: PUTRAJAYA: Malaysians need not worry about the avian flu scare in Hong Kong as there were no infections among humans.
Health director-general Dr Hasan Abdul Rahman said in a statement that the Mini-stry was prepared for influenza pandemics as it had the National Influenza Pandemic Preparedness Plan (NIPPP) in place since 2006.
He said the Health Ministry and the Veterinary Services Department had not detected any infections of Influenza A(H5N1) in humans or chickens in the country.
The Influenza A(H5N1) virus is the causative agent of the H5N1 flu, commonly known as “avian influenza” or “bird flu”.
Hong Kong health authorities has raised its bird flu alert level to “serious” and began culling 17,000 chickens after three birds tested positive for the H5N1 virus.
The Hong Kong Government has also suspended imports of live chickens from mainland China and the trading of live chickens for 21 days.