Indonesia Sees More Deaths After Boy Dies From Bird Flu
Indonesia warned more human bird flu deaths were inevitable after a 5-year-old boy succumbed to the virus, raising the sprawling country’s death toll to 41, the health minister said Tuesday.
“We will continue to have bird flu patients because we have infected chickens in 27 provinces,” Siti Fadilah Supari told reporters. “It is only logical that there will be new cases.”
The latest victim died June 16 in Tulungagung, a town in East Java, she said, citing World Health Organization-sanctioned test results. She said the boy was suspected of catching the virus from chickens that died close to his home. Other family members have been tested for the virus, she said, but gave no more details. Supari said Indonesia’s current death toll stood at 41.
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