Avian flu found on second farm

DOVER, Del. -- Tests confirmed avian flu on a second central Delaware farm, a surprise that creates a "serious situation" for the region's poultry industry, state agriculture officials announced Tuesday.

The discovery was sure to hurt efforts to lift bans by foreign countries on imports of U.S. poultry that were instituted in the past week.

The chicken house was not one of 20 tested in a two-mile radius of the farm where the first flock tested positive last week, but was found in a commercial flock of roaster-type chickens in northern Sussex County, at least five miles away, according to a state agriculture department news release.

Tests on 20 chicken houses within two miles of the first flock were negative, the release said.

"This development is completely unexpected given the precautions we took, the investigation we made and the industry's expectations of this disease's behavior," Agriculture Secretary Michael T. Scuse said in the release.

"We will be taking immediate actions to contain this disease, but this is now a serious situation for the Delmarva poultry industry." Delmarva refers to Delaware, Maryland and Virginia.

In response, all sales of live poultry in Delaware, all sales or auctions of farm equipment and all farmer- and grower-related meetings have been canceled, the state agriculture department announced.