Earthquake, tsunami, nuclear disaster, & H5N1 avian flu, too
From ANIMAL PEOPLE, April 2011:
CHIBA, Japan–Chiba prefecture Governor Kensaku Morita told a
March 13, 2011 press conference that the earthquake and
tsunami-ravaged region is also fighting an outbreak of H5N1 avian
flu–potentially lethal to humans.
Chiba, second among Japanese prefectures in egg production,
lies between Tokyo and the prefectures to the northeast that had the
most displaced people and animals. Living in severely crowded
conditions, with disrupted sanitation, inadequate food, and often
little protection from the elements, many victims–both human and
animal–were already in weakened health due to effects of the tsunami
and, in some cases, perhaps exposure to radiation from the
malfunctioning Fukushima nuclear complex.