Seoul, January 18: A total of 18.8 million chickens and other poultry animals have been culled at farms across South Korea as part of measures to curb the spread of the highly pathogenic H5N8 bird flu, the South Korean Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs said on Monday.

The Asian country reported the first case of the highly pathogenic H5N8 bird flu at a duck farm in the North Jeolla province in late November. Previously, the strain was detected only among wild birds. Outbreaks of the virus have since spread to farms across the entire country. Bird Flu in India: Avian Influenza Confirmed in Poultry Farms in Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh; Heron Sample in Delhi’s Rohini Tests Positive; Check Current Status Here.

The country's warning level for avian flu has been raised to "serious danger." According to the country's law, poultry within a radius of three kilometers (1.9 miles) from farms exposed to the strain must be exterminated, with the farms suspending their operation.

Apart from South Korea, outbreaks of bird flu have also been recently confirmed in some other countries across the world, including Japan, India, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, northern Germany and Belgium.

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