Hundreds of dead chickens discovered a few days ago in Merangin regency, Jambi, have been infected by avian flu, an official confirmed Friday.

Head of Merangin's husbandry agency Imam Budi Cahyono said his agency had conducted a rapid test on the chickens in Antak Seribu village and found the animals were infected with the disease.

"Our participatory disease surveillance team concluded the dead chickens were infected by avian flu," Imam said, adding the team had fumigated several areas in the village to prevent the virus from spreading.

The husbandry agency plans to implement focal culling measures for domestic birds living in a one-kilometer radius of the area where the dead chickens were first discovered, he said.

According to Imam, bird flu is endemic to Lantak Seribu, as a similar outbreak took place there last year.

"Basically, we're asking residents to conduct the culling themselves. If we do it, we'll have to get permission from the owners first," he added.

Residents should fumigate with bath soap once or twice a week to prevent the virus from spreading, he said.

"Using bath soap for fumigating is effective. Residents can't just rely on disinfectant, as there is not enough in stock."

Although the chickens are believed to have died at the beginning of Ramadan, the agency only received word of it a few days ago, Imam added.

He called on residents to report any dead chickens to the husbandry agency.

"They have to come to our office. Don't just call us because we won't be able to verify the report," he said.

Residents of Antak Seribu village said they already suspected the same virus from two years was once again responsible for killing their chickens.

"We're afraid the bird flu has come back, just like in 2006," said Wandi, a villager.

No human fatalities have been reported in the village in connection with the virus.

So far this year, there have been 101 bird flu-related deaths nationwide, with the majority occurring in Jakarta, West Java and Banten.

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