Originally published August 20 2005
Pig-borne mystery illness hits 155 Chinese villages
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
A mysterious pig-borne illness contracted by slaughtering or processing infected pigs or handling infected pork has affected 155 villages in seven cities in China's Sichuan province, and as thousands of health workers inspect and register every pig, Sichuan officials are attempting to educate poor farmers not to slaughter or eat the infected swine.
The death toll in China from a mysterious pig-borne disease continued to rise, with several more cities affected, statistics showed yesterday, despite the government saying that the epidemic was under control.
The number of people killed by the streptococcus suis bacteria, which is usually spread among pigs, rose to 32 while the number of cases increased to 163, according to the health ministry's Web site.
The epidemic first discovered last month was now affecting 155 villages in seven cities in Sichuan Province, including the provincial capital Chengdu, up from two cities initially, according to the ministry.
Still, it said the new cases were not necessarily new infections, but were discovered due to strengthened detection by health authorities.
Four officials from Ziyang city, where many of the infected pigs and humans were found, have been dismissed for dereliction of duty, China Daily said yesterday.
The communist party chief and deputy chief of Dongfeng town were fired after failing to prevent a farmer from butchering sick pigs.
A quarantine official in Qingfeng town was sacked for allowing pigs to be transported outside an affected village despite a ban against pig and pork exports.
Details of the fourth official were not disclosed, the report said.
A team of 49 experts has been sent to affected areas to treat patients, the Beijing News said, but no effective medicine has been found -- one reason for the high death rate of one in five.
Health inspectors there surveyed markets this week, checking for and destroying suspect pork.
They also checked live pigs entering the capital for the bacteria and so far found no suspect swine, the Beijing News said.
About 50,000 health workers and officials have been sent out to inspect and register every pig, and authorities have set up 39 roadside quarantine stations to stop dead pigs from reaching markets.
All content posted on this site is commentary or opinion and is protected under Free Speech. Truth Publishing LLC takes sole responsibility for all content. Truth Publishing sells no hard products and earns no money from the recommendation of products. NaturalNews.com is presented for educational and commentary purposes only and should not be construed as professional advice from any licensed practitioner. Truth Publishing assumes no responsibility for the use or misuse of this material. For the full terms of usage of this material, visit www.NaturalNews.com/terms.shtml