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MACAO, Jan. 26 (Xinhua) -- Macao will suspend its live poultry trade for at least three days immediately after chicken sample tested positive for H7 strain of bird flu on Thursday, the special administrative region's health and civil affairs authorities said.
Civic and Municipal Affairs Bureau chief Jose Maria da Fonseca Tavares told the press that the flu-positive chicken were imported from the Chinese mainland and all poultry markets in Macao will receive strict sterilization procedure. He said all markets in Macao will suspend live poultry trade for at least three days.
The bureau said they have sealed the market where the positive sample was found, and no infected birds has entered retail markets. Some 14,000 chicken and 4,000 pigeons in the market will be culled.
Macao's Health Bureau said a driver from the Chinese mainland has been recognized as close contact. The driver had return to the mainland and the bureau already reported the situation to mainland authorities.
This is the first time in 2017 that Macao suspends its live poultry trade because of bird flu report. In 2016, Macao had suspends the live poultry trade for three times for the reason.
