MADISON, Wis. (WSAU) — There were no new cases of bird flu reported in Wisconsin Saturday, Sunday, or Monday. Much of the follow up work is already completed. The Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection reports crews are working at the six sites in four counties. Five of the six have already had the birds destroyed. The second Jefferson County site where over 800-thousand birds were affected is still being depopulated.
The farms are all composting the dead birds, and state officials are taking surveillance samples from them . The Juneau County farm that was affected is done with sampling, and they have started the cleaning and disinfection process for the entire farm and all of the buildings and equipment.
Governor Scott Walker declared a state of emergency due to the avian flu problems last week. This allows the National Guard to assist. Guard members are assisting with the response to the first detection in Jefferson County. The 14 Guard members are cleaning and disinfecting large vehicles and equipment leaving the site. They have specialized training in this function and are not involved directly in the bird depopulation efforts on the farm.
Total number of birds affected in Wisconsin is now 1-point-288 million. Over 985-thousand are chickens, and over 303-thousand are turkeys. All affected farms remain under quarantine.
