Q&A: Details About the Latest Round of Bird Flu

In just a few days, a bird flu virus has led to the deaths of nearly 400,000 turkeys and chickens on 10 farms in a southwest Indiana county that’s the state’s largest turkey producer.

Bret Marsh (R), the Indiana State Veterinarian, answers questions from the media Monday, Jan.18, 2016, on the avian flu situation in Dubois County at the Center for Technology, Innovation and Manufacturing at Vincennes University Jasper Campus in Jasper, Ind. Dave Weatherwax/The Herald via AP

INDIANAPOLIS — In just a few days, a bird flu virus has led to the deaths of nearly 400,000 turkeys and chickens on 10 farms in a southwest Indiana county that’s the state’s largest turkey producer. Here are some questions and answers about the bird flu virus outbreak in Dubois County, about 70 miles west of Louisville, Kentucky:

What kind of flu is this? Is it the same from last summer?

The avian influenza virus in Indiana is the H7N8 strain. The first of the 10 farms saw a highly pathogenic form, which means infected birds were dying, while most of the other farms saw a low-pathogenic form that only made the birds sick. Officials said low-pathogenic viruses can quickly mutate into the viral form that’s deadly to birds.

This isn’t the same strain as the H5N2 strain that devastated the poultry industry — mostly in the Upper Midwest — last summer. That strain led to the deaths of 48 million birds, mostly chickens and turkeys.

Is it dangerous for humans?

In this Jan. 17. 2016, photo, a worker is sprayed as part of the decontamination process at a farm in Dubois in Dubois, Ind. Sarah Ann Jump/The Herald via AP