BEIJING, Feb. 2 (UPI) -- Five more suspected cases of bird flu have been reported in China, raising to 14 the number of areas in the country with the deadly virus.
The Washington Post said Monday the new information indicates bird flu is spreading across China more quickly than earlier thought.
The new cases could not have come at a worse time: Beijing is struggling to prevent SARS from resurfacing and authorities are facing questions about the late disclosure of a fourth patient with severe acute respiratory syndrome in Guangdong province.
The World Health Organization has warned again that the Chinese government's chance of containing the bird flu virus is quickly diminishing.
The deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu has already prompted the slaughter of millions of chickens and ducks in 10 Asian countries and passed from fowl to humans in Vietnam and Thailand, killing at least 10 people.
