PRAGUE — The Czech Republic’s agriculture minister announced on Feb. 17 that the country would be culling almost 140,000 chickens and turkeys after a bird flu detection.

A government statement said the country found a second case of the H5N8 bird flu virus at a farm in the Pardubice region. 

Czech Minister of Agriculture Miroslav Toman stated the poultry farm was closed immediately and a disinfection loop will be installed at the entrance of the farm to prevent the disease from spreading outside the premises. The government set up a 3-km. protection zone and a 10-km. surveillance zone.

Toman said transmission to humans had not been reported yet.

Several bird flu cases have appeared in other countries this year including a H5N1 outbreak in China during early February.