Excessive heat made it hard for poultry workers to wear goggles and masks while culling chickens on a farm experiencing an H5N1 outbreak.
Bird flu has infected six farmworkers in Colorado this month - the most in any state - as health officials stressed the importance of preparedness to contain the H5N1 virus spreading in dairy herds and poultry flocks across the country.
The culling on the poultry farm in Weld County involves 160 workers and will continue for another 10 to 14 days to prevent further spread among the flock, said Eric Deeble, a senior official at the U.S. agriculture department overseeing the bird flu response. H5N1 bird flu is widespread in wild birds worldwide and caused outbreaks in U.S. dairy cows for the first time this spring.
Direct exposure to infected birds increases the risk of contracting the disease because birds shed flu viruses in their saliva, mucous and feces. Dairy workers can contract the virus through contaminated milk or equipment. The CDC has not identified any unusual flu trends in laboratory data or emergency department visits at the national, state or local levels, Shah said.
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