Zimbabwe: Anthrax in Chegutu

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Source: http://www1.sundaymail.co.zw/inside....tid=4365&cat=1

Anthrax in Chegutu

Sunday Mail Reporter

ONE person and 25 cattle died last week following an outbreak of the deadly anthrax disease in Chegutu and Seke.

As part of measures to curb the spread of the disease, the Veterinary Field Services in the Ministry of Agriculture promptly launched a programme to vaccinate more than 100 000 head of cattle in the affected areas, which also include Selous and Mhondoro.
The department?s deputy director, Dr Chenjerai Jagu, confirmed the outbreak to ZBC News on Christmas Day.
He warned people against consuming meat from ?suspicious? sources and slaughtering cattle which appear sick.

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Re: Zimbabwe: Anthrax in Chegutu

Source: http://www.zimdiaspora.com/index.php...tips&Itemid=18

Veterinary officials fears on Anthrax spread
Tuesday, 29 December 2009 20:57 Editor News

Anthrax is feared to be spreading in Zimbabwe as veterinary officials said on Monday they are testing a suspected case of the deadly disease from a rural growth point about 50 kilometers East of Harare.

The suspected case followed an outbreak of the disease in central parts of the country last week, which killed one person and 25 cattle.

Veterinary Services Department deputy director Chenjerai Njagu told Xinhua on Monday that the results of the suspected case from Juru Growth Point in Goromonzi district would be out on Tuesday.

He said the area is one of the few districts which were left out during vaccination done at the beginning of the year.

"We left out Goromonzi and Seke districts because of shortage of vaccines," said Njagu.

"Now these are the areas giving us problems because we had not vaccinated them at the beginning of the year."

The anthrax outbreak in Seke, some 40 km South-East of Harare, killed 18

cattle while one person and seven cattle succumbed to the disease which broke out last week in Selous, 60 km North-West of the capital.

Njagu said the disease was dangerous as one case can kill several people who consume meat from an infected animal.

He said the department would soon move into the affected areas to vaccinate cattle.

The department vaccinated 1,100 cattle in Seke over the Christmas holiday but Njagu said the turn out was very low.

"The turn out was low and we are going to repeat vaccination after the holiday," he said.

Anthrax is a soil-borne disease which is endemic in Zimbabwe. It is normally recorded during the rainy season when sprouting grass brings out the bacteria from soil. Xinhua

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Re: Zimbabwe: Anthrax in Chegutu

Source: http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/...W?OpenDocument

Officials rule out suspected anthrax case in Zimbabwe
Source: Xinhua News Agency
Date: 29 Dec 2009


HARARE, Dec 29, 2009 (Xinhua via COMTEX) -- Zimbabwe's veterinary officials on Tuesday ruled out a suspected anthrax case from a rural growth point about 50 kilometers East of Harare.

Veterinary Field Services director Unesu Ushewokunze-Obatolu told Xinhua results of the suspected case did not confirm anthrax.

"We are ruling it out," she said.

The suspected case had raised fears that the deadly disease could be spreading following its outbreak in two central districts of the country last week where it killed one person and 25 cattle.

The disease killed 18 cattle in Seke, some 40 km South-East of Harare while the person who succumbed to the disease was from Selous, 60 km North-West of the capital. Seven cattle from one farm in the district also died of anthrax.

Department deputy director Chenjerai Njagu said Juru Growth Point (a medium-sized rural service centre) was in one of the few districts which were left out during vaccination carried out at the beginning of the year. The growth point is in Goromonzi district.

"We left out Goromonzi and Seke districts because of shortage of vaccines," said Njagu.

"Now these are the areas giving us problems because we had not vaccinated them at the beginning of the year."

He said the disease was dangerous as one case can kill several people who consume meat from an infected animal, adding that the department would soon move into the affected areas to vaccinate cattle.

The department vaccinated 1, 100 cattle in Seke over the Christmas holiday but Njagu said the turn out was very low.

"The turn out was low and we are going to repeat vaccination after the holiday," he said.

Anthrax is a soil-borne disease which is endemic in Zimbabwe. It is normally recorded during the rainy season when sprouting grass brings out the bacteria from soil.

The department has since ordered butcheries and abattoirs in the affected areas to stop selling beef to the public to prevent transmission of the disease to humans.

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Re: Zimbabwe: Anthrax in Chegutu

http://hisz.rsoe.hu/alertmap/woalert_read.php?glide=BH-20100112-24532-ZWE&cat=dis&lang=eng

Zimbabwe?s Agriculture Ministry on Tuesday reported a fresh outbreak of anthrax in some parts of the country. Veterinary Services director Stewart Hargreaves told ZimOnline that his department has recorded fresh reports of an outbreak of the deadly livestock disease. ?There has been an outbreak over the past two weeks. The outbreak has been recorded in Chegutu, Karoi, Kadoma and Chinhoyi,? said Hargreaves. ?The situation is under control, there is no need to panic because anthrax is a common disease. It?s in the soil.? While Zimbabwe experiences periodic outbreaks of anthrax especially during the rainy season veterinary experts say the high incidence of outbreaks in recent years is partly fuelled by lawlessness and chaos in the farming sector where hardliner supporters of President Robert Mugabe have continued invading farms. ?The disease is made worse by the constant movement of livestock on farms because of continuing invasions,? the Commercial Farmers Union said in a statement last week. The union represents the country?s few remaining white commercial farmers. Anthrax is a soil-borne disease that infects livestock and can easily spread to people if they eat meat from infected livestock. The disease is normally recorded during the rainy season when sprouting grass brings out the bacteria from soil. The anthrax outbreak comes at a time Zimbabwe?s government is battling to rebuild the national herd that was severely depleted by droughts and a chaotic land reform exercise that began a decade ago.