LINCOLN, Neb., May 13 (UPI) -- Nebraska has become the 16th state affected by the ongoing avian-flu outbreak and officials announced Tuesday it would kill 1.7 million chickens.
The H5N2 Avian Influenza spread to an egg farm in Dixon County, where chickens will be quarantined and euthanized with the oversight of trained veterinarians.
"Unfortunately, Nebraska has joined a long list of states currently dealing with highly pathogenic avian influenza," Nebraska Agriculture Department Director Greg Ibach told NBC News. "The goal is to quarantine the flock and attempt to control and contain the virus as quickly as possible."
Officials are urging farmers in the surrounding area of northeast Nebraska to follow proper biosecurity procedures. Most egg-laying operations in the state occur in the northeast and Nebraska has nearly 10 billion egg-laying chickens, ranking 10th among states in egg production.
More than 32 million birds have been affected by the virus since December.
Iowa, the top-producing egg state in the country, recently became the third in the nation to declare a state of emergency as a result of a fast-spreading avian flu, joining Minnesota and Wisconsin.
The highly pathogenic H5N2 bird flu has devastated dozens of farms across states. Health experts say it is not contagious to humans.
Experts think the virus was carried to the United States by migrating Asian waterfowl.
