Romania has confirmed a second outbreak of African swine fever and 20,000 pigs will be culled, authorities said.
The outbreak was confirmed in Belceşti in the county of Iasi, north east Romania. The local Center for Disease Control met and took emergency measures.
They established a protection zone for a three-kilometer radius and a surveillance zone for a radius of 10 kilometers.
Restrictions have been imposed on the on the movement of people, animals and transport. The culling will start on Friday and workers have already dug a huge pit.
Anything that could be a source of infection–- such as feed and litter or anything that could be a source of infection will also be destroyed, to avoid any risk of spreading the virus.
The farm will be disinfected. The Italian owners have not commented on the situation.
Bogdan Novenschi, deputy director of DSV Iasi: „-Yes. Killing is necessary. We have no other way of stopping it. There is no cure for this disease, there is no vaccine and the disease evolves anyway with mortality.”
Romania has more outbreaks of African swine fever than any other country in the European Union: about 200 cases have been detected by across the country this year.
Earlier this month, Romania has confirmed another outbreak of African Swine Fever at a large pig farm in the western county of Timis. Almost 40,000 animals were culled.
The fever affecting pigs and wild boar has spread across Eastern Europe in recent years. It does not affect humans.
Hundreds of cases were reported in Romania and several other European Union states this year among pigs kept in backyards and smallholdings as well as several large private farms.
Outbreaks were also detected recently in Germany and Italy.
Romania confirms African swine fever outbreak at pig farm; tens of thousands of pigs to be culled
