Mr Phat, who is also head of the National Steering Committee for Avian Flu Control and Prevention, said that the disease has already recurred in southern Tra Vinh province, which indicates that another outbreak of the epidemic could happen. The disease tends to occur when the weather gets colder as it has done in previous years.

He ordered all localities to step up prevention measures, especially vaccinations, which must follow strict technical procedures, and regulate the poultry trade and slaughtering.

The Vietnam Veterinary Department said on October 11 that five of 300 ducks on a farm in Tra Cu district, Tra Vinh province had been tested positive for the deadly H5N1 virus. Local veterinary workers culled infected water fowl immediately and quarantined the affected area to stem the spread of the disease.

Bird flu broke out in Vietnam in May, ravaging provinces across the country. In September, Tra Vinh became the last locality in the Mekong region to be declared free of the virus.

*** Meanwhile, veterinarians in the southernmost city of Ca Mau destroyed nine pigs infected with blue ear disease, known as Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome (PRRS), to prevent the disease’s outbreak in the city and surrounding areas.

Over the last three weeks, they have culled 56 sick animas and collected blood samples for testing.

On October 9 and 10, veterinarians in central Khanh Hoa province also culled at least 270 pigs infected with blue ear disease.

PRRS first struck the central provinces of Quang Nam, Quang Ngai and Da Nang city in late June, then hit the Mekong Delta province of Long An in late July.