2nd avian flu outbreak confirmed in Vancouver Island area

Another outbreak of the highly contagious avian flu has been found in a flock of chickens in the Vancouver Island area.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) confirmed there was an outbreak in the Nanaimo, B.C., area on Wednesday.

CTV News has learned the outbreak was detected at backyard chicken farm on Gabriola Island, a community about five kilometres off the coast of Nanaimo.

It's the second outbreak to be recorded in the Vancouver Island area, and the 17th to occur in British Columbia.

The first case on Vancouver Island was recorded on May 12 at a small poultry flock in the Comox Valley.

The CFIA says a control zone around the farm is still being determined to limit the spread of the H5N1 strain of the bird flu.

Somerset Farm on Gabriola Island says it's quarantining its property until the exact area of the control zone is announced by the CFIA.

Another Gabriola Island resident that raises her own flock, mostly consisting of ducks, says she was made aware of the flu outbreak and quickly brought her birds inside.

Wednesday's confirmation comes as the agency reports no further cases of the easily spread virus around a farm in the central Kootenay region, where a small flock was infected on April 27, so the control zone in that area has been lifted.

The CFIA says that this flu is spreading globally, and that there's no evidence that the illness can be spread to humans. Eating and cooking eggs and poultry remains safe, says the agency.

Farmers are encouraged to be vigilant during this time and take precautions like limiting contact between chickens and wild birds, limiting the amount of time farmers spend with chickens, and thoroughly disinfecting clothing worn inside coops.

With files from the Canadian Press