US ready for bird flu, others ‘less so’ (Sydney Morning Herald) US preparations against a possible outbreak of the deadly form of the H5N1 avian flu virus are solid, but other countries may not be as ready, a US health safety official warned on Thursday. [News Source]

US ready for bird flu, others ‘less so’ (AAP via Yahoo!7 News) US preparations against a possible outbreak of bird flu are solid, but other countries may not be as ready, warned a US health official. [News Source]

U.S. bird flu plans near “state of the art”: official (Reuters via Yahoo! News) U.S. preparations against a possible outbreak of the deadly form of the H5N1 avian flu virus are solid, but other countries may not be as ready, a U.S. health safety official warned on Thursday. [News Source]

Nurses on frontlines in bird-flu fight (Brookings Daily Register) BY JOHN KUBAL America's nurses played a key role in past flu endemics that sickened and killed millions; and should Avian Influenza play out in a worst-case scenario, they would again be called upon to provide care and comfort to the stricken. [News Source]

Bird flu: Who’s next? Bangladesh!The Role of Public Administration (News From Bangladesh) In comparison to malaria and diarroeal diseases, which together kill over 3 million people every year, bird flu has killed very few people. However, the World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that the H5N1 virus may mutate into a new human flu virus against, which humans have no immunity. [News Source]

Shortfalls in bird flu fight warned. China still faces serious shortcomings in its bird flu prevention preparations and government departments must do better ahead of the autumn season, a vice agriculture minister said. [News Source]

Healthy chickens can carry bird flu: Indonesian official. An Indonesian official has warned that a healthy chicken could be a carrier of the bird flu virus although it shows no symptoms of the illness. [News Source]

Singapore conducts bird flu exercise. Singapore's Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) conducted an exercise on Wednesday to test its readiness in case of a bird flu outbreak. [News Source]

Ningxia reports new bird flu cases. A new outbreak of bird flu has killed about 1,000 domestic poultry in a village in the country's northwestern Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. [News Source]

Mauritania submits bird flu prevention plan at global conference (AFP via Yahoo! News) The government of Mauritania, considered a high-risk country for avian flu, has submitted a national prevention plan against the disease to international peers at a conference in Nouakchott. [News Source]

City prepares for avian flu (Manassas Journal Messenger) The Manassas City Council heard a presentation Wednesday on the H5N1 avian influenza and what would happen in the event of a pandemic. The presentation was in two parts, one part giving an overview of the avian flu, and another part which detailed local plans to deal with it. [News Source]

U.S. bird flu plans near “state of the art”: official (Reuters via Yahoo! News) U.S. preparations against a possible outbreak of the deadly form of the H5N1 avian flu virus are solid, but other countries may not be as ready, a U.S. health safety official warned on Thursday. [News Source]