Nat'l alert issued over 1st report of African swine fever case in 2 months
This photo shows quarantine officials carrying out disinfectant measures following a report on an African swine fever case, Sept. 10. Courtesy of county office of Euiseong
Korea's quarantine authorities issued a red alert nationwide on Monday to beef up the response to an African swine fever (ASF) case reported for the first time in two months, officials said.
On Sunday, the country reported the ASF case, the first in about two months, at a pig farm in the county of Yeoncheon, located in the northern part of Gyeonggi Province.
This marked the fifth confirmed case of ASF this year, with the previous one reported in the city of Paju, Gyeonggi Province, in July.
The government issued a 48-hour standstill order for pig farms and related facilities in Yeoncheon and surrounding regions, and is taking necessary measures to prevent the spread of the virus, including the culling of affected pigs, according to the officials.
"Since all five cases this year have been concentrated in the northern part of Gyeonggi Province, the provincial government must mobilize all available human and material resources to make every effort to prevent any further spread of the disease," Vice Agriculture Minister Kang Hyoung-seok said in a disaster response meeting.