Bird flu epidemic not yet contained in Russia - official

The reports are conflicting each other almost every day it seems.

NOVOSIBIRSK. Aug 9 (Interfax-Siberia) - It is premature to say that the outburst of bird flu has been contained in the Russian regions where the virus has been registered, head of Rospotrebnadzor consumers' rights oversight authority Gennady Onishchenko told a conference in Novosibirsk on Tuesday.

"It will be possible to speak of containment only after the death of birds stops and also after migrating wild birds fly away for the winter," he said.

Onishchenko said efforts are being made to contain the epidemic and corresponding steps are being taken. "The area of the spread of the disease is limited to five regions but that does not mean that birds are not dying somewhere else," Onishchenko said.