Britain was today rocked by fresh bird flu fears after a human case was detected in England.
Officials said the unidentified Brit, thought to be from the West Midlands, is believed to have contracted it on a farm, where they had close contact with a large number of infected birds.
UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) bosses are racing to contain the virus hunting down all contacts of the individual who is ‘well’ and was admitted to a High Consequence Infectious Disease (HCID) unit.
They were only caught after the health body carried out routine testing on people who had been in close contact with infected birds.
Bird-to-human transmission of avian influenza is rare and has only occurred a handful of times before in the UK.
Symptoms of the infection mirror those of regular flu and Covid. It doesn’t spread easily between humans.
But experts have recently warned that the virus could be mutating to become more transmissible to humans.
The strain carried by the infected Brit, H5N1, is the same that sparked world’s biggest ever bird flu outbreak in 2023.
A human case of avian flu has been detected in England — after warnings the virus could be mutating to become more transmissible to humans
Culling of infected birds has begun in Britain, as experts attempt to stop the spread of the virus
It affected more than 200 million domestic birds globally on top of countless wild birds, spilling into mammals like mink, foxes, raccoons and bears.
UKHSA officials today, however, cautioned that the risk to the wider public continues to be very low.
Human-to-human transmission of avian influenza has only been documented very rarely and never in Europe or the UK.
Professor Susan Hopkins, chief medical adviser at UKHSA, said: ‘The risk of avian flu to the general public remains very low despite this confirmed case.
‘We have robust systems in place to detect cases early and take necessary action, as we know that spillover infections from birds to humans may occur.
‘Currently there is no evidence of onwards transmission from this case.
‘People are reminded not to touch sick or dead birds and it’s important that they follow Defra advice about reporting any suspected avian influenza cases.’
UK chief veterinary officer Christine Middlemiss added: ‘While avian influenza is highly contagious in birds, this is a very rare event and is very specific to the circumstances on this premises.
The strain carried by the infected Brit, H5N1, is the same that sparked world’s biggest ever bird flu outbreak in 2023. Pictured above, a bird flu outbreak in Queens Park, Heywood, Rochdale in 2023
So far more than 60 confirmed human cases of H5N1 infection have been reported in 2024, following a widespread outbreak across bird and cattle farms in the United States
‘We took swift action to limit the spread of the disease at the site in question, all infected birds are being humanely culled, and cleansing and disinfection of the premises will be undertaken all to strict biosecure standards.
‘This is a reminder that stringent biosecurity is essential when keeping animals.
‘We are seeing a growing number of avian flu cases in birds on both commercial farms and in backyard flocks across the country.
‘Implementing scrupulous biosecurity measures will help protect the health and welfare of your birds from the threat of avian influenza and other diseases.’
Meanwhile, Andrew Gwynne, minister for public health and prevention, also said: ‘The safety of the public is paramount, and we are monitoring this situation closely.
‘The risk of wider or onward transmission is very low, however the UK remains prepared and ready to respond to any current and future health threats.
‘We recently added the H5 vaccine, which protects against avian influenza, to our stockpile as part of our preparedness plans.’
The human case comes just months after a panel of UK Government experts said the ongoing infections in American cattle had boosted the risk of human-to-human transmission to up to 35 per cent, compared to just five per cent previously.
Independent experts have also previously told MailOnline the threat of a new pandemic sparked by bird flu is low but ‘cannot be excluded’ as a possibility.
UK scientists tasked with developing ‘scenarios of early human transmission’ of bird flu have warned that 5 per cent of infected people could die if the virus took off in humans (shown under scenario three). Under another scenario, the scientists assumed 1 per cent of those infected would be hospitalised and 0.25 per cent would die — similar to how deadly Covid was in autumn 2021 (scenario one). The other saw a death rate of 2.5 per cent (scenario two)
Alan Gosling (pictured), a retired engineer in Devon who kept ducks at home, caught the virus in early 2022 after his pets became infected
This fresh case was detected after the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) identified an outbreak of H5N1 in a flock of birds, UKHSA officials said.
They then carried out routine monitoring on people who had been in close contact with the infected birds.
The birds were infected with the DI.2 genotype, one of the viruses known to be circulating in birds in the UK this season.
This is different to strains circulating among mammals and birds in the US.
Officials have been tracing individuals who have been in contact with the confirmed case, with those at highest risk of exposure offered antiviral treatment, the UKHSA added.
Experts today said while ‘human to human transmission is very unlikely’ the UK must not be complacent in its response.
Jonathan Ball, an expert in molecular virology at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine said: ‘Bird flu, which as the name suggests circulates widely in wild birds, thankfully doesn’t transmit to humans very easily, and only really occurs in people who have regular contact with either wild birds or poultry.
‘Even in the rare cases where people do become infected, onward human to human transmission is very unlikely.
The Avian Influenza Prevention Zone (AIPZ) has been extended for the whole of England in a bid to control the concerning rise in number of cases of the disease
Even stricter measures means all birds must be kept indoors in York, North Yorkshire, Kingston Upon Hull, Lincolnshire, Norfolk, Suffolk and Shropshire
‘However, that doesn’t mean we can be complacent.
‘There is always the risk that the virus can evolve and become better adapted to spread amongst humans.
‘So, it’s important to be vigilant, to ensure good wild fowl and poultry surveillance and when human cases do occur, to isolate the patient to remove the risk of onward transmission.’
There have been at least 23 confirmed cases of bird flu in England since the start of 2024, most occurring in eastern England where the strictest prevention measures are in place.
On Saturday, a housing order requiring birds to be kept in enclosures, which had been in force in East Riding of Yorkshire, City of Kingston Upon Hull, Lincolnshire, Norfolk, Suffolk was extended.
It also now covers Shropshire, York and North Yorkshire.
A 3km protection zone will be put in place around any infected premises and will also be subject to a housing order.
In America, where there has been a sustained nationwide outbreak in poultry and cattle, there have been more than 60 human cases in recent months.
An analysis in a December posted by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on its website found signs the virus detected in one patient’s throat had genetic changes that may lead to ‘increased virus binding’ to specific ‘cell receptors found in the upper respiratory tract of humans.’
These changes have not been found in birds, including in the backyard poultry flock thought to have infected the Louisiana patient initially.
Humans are unlikely to catch bird flu from eating poultry and game birds because it is heat-sensitive, and properly cooking the poultry will kill the virus.
Usual symptoms in humans are high fever, a cough, sore throat, muscle aches and a general feeling of malaise.
And just like with ordinary flu, it can quickly develop into serious respiratory illness and pneumonia.
Human infections occur when the virus gets into a person’s eyes, nose, mouth or is inhaled.
While this is the first human case of H5N1 in the current outbreak, Britain has seen six other people infected before.
One, Alan Gosling — a retired engineer in Devon who kept ducks at home — caught the virus in early 2022 after his pets became infected.
He later tested negative while he was in quarantine for nearly three weeks.
