New case of Bluetongue disease
The Bluetongue disease is spread by midges
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Friday, 08, Feb 2008 08:01
A new Bluetongue protection zone has been set up after a case of the disease was discovered in Greater London, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has announced.
The new 20km zone covers parts of west and north London as well as reaching into Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire.
Two cases of the disease were confirmed inside the current protection area by Defra today.
A statement on the government department's website declared that the infected animals had been found as a result of pre-movement testing currently required to move animals out of zones in the vector-free period.
It also claimed that further cases could be identified in the coming weeks.
The number of confirmed cases of the virus now stands at 75.
Bluetongue was first confirmed in the UK on September 28th last year in East Anglia.
It is spread by midges and can be fatal to animals such as sheep and cows.