A GRAY heron found dead near Hong Kong’s border with Shenzhen was confirmed to have died of the H5N1 strain of bird flu in the second case of a bird dying from the disease this year in the territory.

“We have already inspected the chicken farms nearby and we have found no bird flu symptoms or abnormal deaths among chickens,” S.P. Lau, vice director of agriculture, fisheries and conservation, told a news conference Wednesday.

Seven people who came into contact with the dead bird were being monitored by the department, but none of them had been hospitalized or were suffering from symptoms of the virus.

The government has stepped up monitoring of bio-security measures at chicken farms, the inspection of poultry stalls in retail markets and the surveillance of wild birds at recreational parks. The Center for Health Protection has also initiated its surveillance program for public health monitoring.

Hong Kong’s health departments urged the public to observe good personal hygiene and avoid contact with wild birds and live poultry.

The heron was found Monday by a worker at a construction site in the restricted Lok Mau Chau border area and was handed to the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department.

On Tuesday, the government said the heron was suspected of having fallen victim to a virus belonging to the H5 bird flu family.

Health experts fear the virus, which has killed 12 people in Thailand and 20 in Vietnam this year, could mutate into a form that could be transmitted between humans.

Hong Kong has been a major concern for health experts, who are worried about a comeback of bird flu because the territory is a favorite resting place for migratory birds, a natural reservoir of the virus during the winter months.

China has reported bird flu outbreaks among poultry this year.

In January, a dead peregrine falcon tested positive for bird flu after it was found in a rural area in Hong Kong.

(Shenzhen Daily, Xinhua News Agency November 4, 2004)