Four sailors improve
http://asia.news.yahoo.com/040925/ap/d85ahl500.html

Saturday September 25, 3:13 PM
Four sailors improve, one still sick as Malaysia fears bird flu spreads beyond quarantined state
One Malaysian navy sailor remained ill with flu-like symptoms and four others recovered Saturday as the country scrambled to determine whether potentially deadly bird flu was spreading beyond a quarantined northern state.

The sailors remained under observation at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Kota Kinabalu, capital of Sabah state on the tip of Borneo island, said Ramlee Rahmat, director of disease control at the Health Ministry.

Authorities expected test results in the next few days on the sailors and dead swallows that they came into contact with during a patrol on Layang-Layang island, part of the disputed Spratlys group, to see if the lethal H5N1 flu strain was present.

The island lies more than 1,500 kilometers (900 miles) from the northern peninsular state of Kelantan, site of all of Malaysia's bird flu cases so far since the first erupted in a village Aug. 17 in fighting cocks smuggled from Thailand.

The islands are closer to Vietnam, one of the countries hardest hit by the flu, and within flying distance of the Philippines and Borneo _ shared by Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei _ by migratory birds, one of the main agents believed to be spreading the disease

"This is something we cannot control," said Ramlee, referring to migratory birds. "If it is about stopping the virus spread among poultry, I think we're already doing exactly what needs to be done."

The H5N1 strain has killed at least 28 people in Vietnam and Thailand since it first erupted earlier this year. More than 100 million ducks and chickens have been culled to stop it from spreading, but the World Health Organization believes it is already entrenched in parts of Asia.

In Kelantan, veterinary authorities discovered a new possible infection Saturday, with three ducks were found dead in a village in the same district as Malaysia's first case. Culling was to begin immediately.

About a dozen sites in Kelantan have been infected, most within a small radius about 15 kilometers (10 miles) within the site of the first outbreak. Authorities have culled more than 7,000 chickens, ducks and pet birds and are working to curb smuggling from Thailand.

Malaysia has screened more than 10,000 people in Kelantan and hospitalized more than a dozen who showed flu-like symptoms. All tested negative and were released.