FRANKLIN COUNTY, Wash. — Washington State Department of Health officials said Thursday that two people tested positive for bird flu after an outbreak at a poultry farm in Franklin County.
According to the health department, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has confirmed the cases after investigating exposures to farm workers and testing workers. Investigators with the CDC didn’t find any evidence of human-to-human transmission at this time.
Current infections only impact workers who may have had contact with infected birds or their environments at the farm. According to the health department, none of the exposed workers have experienced severe illness or been hospitalized.
Any workers or contractors who may have worked on a poultry farm in Benton or Franklin counties since Oct. 7 should call the Benton-Franklin Health Department (BFHD) if they have symptoms. The symptoms include red eyes, feeling feverish, cough, sore throat, or other influenza-like illness. For more information and help, call the BFHD at at 509-460-4550.
“Avian influenza is a disease caused by influenza Type A viruses that naturally occur in wild aquatic birds throughout the world,” according to the health department. “These viruses can also infect other species of birds, and occasionally mammals, and can cause significant mortality in poultry.”
Avian influenza viruses rarely infect people and make them sick, but people who have backyard poultry should report any sick or dead birds to the Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA). The health department recommends avoiding contact with sick or dead wildlife and reporting sick or dead wild birds or other animals. Also, never handle or allow pets near dead birds or other wildlife.
For more information, call the department at 1-800-606-3056 or report sick domestic birds online. In addition, veterinarians should also report sick or dead domestic animals or livestock suspected of having avian influenza. The report should be made to the WSDA here.