The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) on Sunday confirmed an outbreak of bird flu in the country for the first time.

"Bird flu has recently broken out at a few chicken farms including the Hadang Chicken Farm, hundreds of thousands of infected chickens have been burned before their burial at the relevant chicken farms. No one is reported to have been infected with this bird flu from among breeders of those farms," the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) quoted the State Emergency Veterinary and Anti-Epizootic Committee as saying.

"Upon its outbreak on those farms the committee lost no time to take emergency measures and meticulously organized veterinary and anti-epizootic work to prevent its spread to other poultry farms," the KCNA added.

Officials of the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Public Health have already set up mechanisms to prevent the spread of bird flu and are mobilizing broad masses for this campaign, the KCNA said.

The KCNA said on March 7 that it was "taking thoroughgoing preventive measures and setting up a watch system to bar bird flu from infiltrating into the country".

(Xinhua News Agency March 28, 2005)