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Bird flu is found at sites in Yorkshire and Lancashire

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Avian flu is highly infectious in birds

A protection zone has been put around a site in North Yorkshire after birds there were confirmed as having the H5N1 virus.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said bird flu was found at premises near Leeming Bar, Hambleton on Saturday.

Defra said further testing was under way and that all birds at the site would be humanely culled.

On Friday, bird flu was found at a site in Fylde, Lancashire.

Temporary control zones covering 3km (1.8 miles) and 10km (6.2 miles) are in place around both the Leeming Bar and Fylde sites.

Jamie Niblock/BBC Julie MenziesJamie Niblock/BBC
Sanctuary owner Julie Menzies said she and her team were devastated by the outbreak at Willow Wildlife Animal Sanctuary in Kirby Cross in Essex

On Thursday, the highly contagious H5N1 virus was found at the Willow Wildlife Animal Sanctuary in Kirby Cross in Essex.

Sanctuary owner Julie Menzies said she and her team were devastated by the outbreak.

The Defra website states the virus is "primarily a disease of birds and the risk to the general public's health is very low".

Avian flu is spread by close contact with an infected bird, whether it is dead or alive.

An Avian Influenza Prevention Zone (AIPZ) has been in place across Great Britain since 3 November, after the discovery of a strain of the virus in a small poultry unit in Warwickshire.

The AIPZ means bird keepers need to follow strict biosecurity measures to help protect their flocks.

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