By Sarah Keane • Published: 20 Feb 2021 • 16:47
BREAKING NEWS: Russia detects the world’s first case of H5N8 bird flu in humans
Just as the world seems to be emerging from the crippling third wave of the coronavirus pandemic and things look set to get back on an even keel, 2021 has dealt another devastating blow with officials in Russia confirming that they have detected the first ever cases of H5N8 bird flu in humans.
The silver lining, if there is one, is that so far the virus hasn’t shown signs of passing from person to person, according to head of consumer health watchdog Rospotrebnadzor, Anna Popova, who said that the phenomenon had been reported to the World Health Organisation (WHO). She added on Saturday, February 20, that Russia made the WHO aware of the situation ‘several days ago, just as we became absolutely certain of our results.’
While there are several types of the avian flu, H5N8, although lethal to birds, was not previously thought to be transmissible or pose any risks to people.
‘The discovery of these mutations when the virus has not still acquired an ability to transmit from human to human gives us all, the entire world, time to prepare for possible mutations and react in an adequate and timely fashion,’ Ms Popova told Rossiya 24 TV.
‘Time will tell’ if the virus can mutate and transmit between people, she added.
________________________________________________________________________
Thank you for taking the time to read this news article “Breaking News: Russia Detects World’s First Case Of Bird Flu In Humans”. For more UK daily news, Spanish daily news and Global news stories, visit the Euro Weekly News home page.
Share this story
Subscribe to our Euro Weekly News alerts to get the latest stories into your inbox!
By signing up, you will create a Euro Weekly News account if you don't already have one. Review our Privacy Policy for more information about our privacy practices.
Former teacher and health services manager with a Degree in English, Sarah moved to Spain from Southern Ireland with her husband, who runs his own car rental business, in 2019. She is now enjoying a completely different pace and quality of life on the Costa Blanca South, with wonderful Spanish and expat friends in Cabo Roig. Sarah began working with Euro Weekly News in 2020 and loves nothing more than bringing all the latest national and international news to her local community.
By signing up, you will create a Euro Weekly News account if you don’t already have one. Review our Privacy Policy for more information about our privacy practices.
Download our media pack in either English or Spanish.