HARRISBURG – With tests indicating positive cases of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in commercial poultry in five PA counties, the PA Department of Agriculture has escalated its response to protect the agriculture industry from the spread of the virus. Last month, PA’s first confirmed case this year was found in a 50,000-bird flock at a Lehigh County poultry farm. Several commercial poultry farms in Cumberland, Dauphin, Lancaster, Lebanon, and Lehigh Counties are presumed to be positive based on the presence of the virus in initial samples, and rapid deaths among birds. The department, together with the USDA, is leading a state and federal inter-agency task force carrying out a comprehensive response on these farms to help keep the virus from spreading further. Each presumed positive farm is quarantined. All commercial poultry facilities within a 10-kilometer radius of infected flocks are subject to testing requirements and restrictions on moving poultry products. Dairy farms within a 3km radius are also subject to testing requirements and restrictions on transporting products. The response includes education and public outreach, as well as minimizing risk though strict bio-security measures and continued surveillance, testing, and farm management.
