Mild bird flu found in Wales spreads to humans

Pupils and staff at a school in Wales are being offered anti-flu drugs after being in contact with a child suspected of contracting bird flu in an outbreak of a mild strain of the virus, health authorities said yesterday.

Teachers and children at the school, which is close to a farm in Corwen, North Wales, where the H7N2 strain of bird flu was discovered last week, were being treated with antiviral medication as a precaution, the National Public Health Service (NPHS) said in a statement.

A total of 12 people have been identified as suffering from the flu, reporting "symptoms of a flu like illness or conjunctivitis" it said, but stressed no one was seriously ill.

It identified 142 people who may have had contact with the avian flu and said it could not rule out person-to-person contact.

"Person-to-person spread would be very unusual but limited spread of this type has been seen elsewhere in the past in some cases of bird flu," said Marion Lyons of the NPHS.

"As a precautionary measure the NPHS is continuing to offer people who have had contact with individuals with this illness antiviral medication to minimise the risk of spread."