Foot-and-mouth – the second wave?

22 May 2001



Foot-and-mouth – the second wave?

By Jeremy Hunt, north-west England correspondent

SOME 100,000 animals from about 100 farms have been slaughtered as fears grow that a second wave of foot-and-mouth disease has hit northern England.

Confirmed cases of the disease around Settle, North Yorkshire, are among the worst seen by government vets since the start of the outbreak in February.

The Ministry of Agriculture has confirmed that some of the levels of infection suggested foot-and-mouth had been present in the area for up to three weeks.

Tim Dew, a National Farmers Union group secretary, said one case confirmed on Tuesday (22 May) showed the disease had only been present for 24 hours.

But he added: “It had a head-start, and thats what has caused the problem, but the not all the foot-and-mouth cases are showing signs of long-term infection.

So far, there have been 17 confirmed cases of foot-and-mouth in the North Yorkshire Dales area. A further three cases are under investigation.

But livestock from more farms have been slaughtered on suspicion of having the disease, or because they were next to holdings with a confirmed outbreak.

Government officials have yet to establish a possible link between the Settle outbreaks and a case at Paythorne, near Clitheroe in Lancashire.

Farmers in Lancashire are angry at a delay in slaughtering sheep from a Settle farm that were being summered on fields at Downham, near Clitheroe.

Steve Fawcett, a Clitheroe-based NFU group secretary, said: “The Settle farm was confirmed on Saturday, but the sheep were not slaughtered until Tuesday.

Another NFU spokesman confirmed that all deadstock was being transported out of the county for disposal. No stock was being burned in North Yorkshire.

• Settle could be next Cumbria, FWi, 22 May, 2001
• Police no-go plea over N Yorks cull, FWi, 21 May, 2001
  

Farm e-Business Survey. Click here to enter and win 100 Amazon vouchers