New cases bring 'second wave' of foot-and-mouth, total reaches 127

1:00 pm

LONDON - Britain is being hit by "a second wave" of foot-and-mouth disease, the Government's chief veterinary officer, Jim Scudamore, said yesterday, when a record daily number of 21 new cases were confirmed, and livestock marked down for destruction reached 100,000 animals.

The second wave was expected from livestock infected before movement restrictions came into force and was being contained, Mr Scudamore said.

The fresh outbreaks, including the first in Somerset, took the total of confirmed cases to 127, with a further case in Northern Ireland.

In other developments, the Badminton Horse Trials were abandoned for only the fourth time in the event's 52-year history, and the Government made a double move to ease the burden of affected farmers.

The huge bonfires of slaughtered farm animals that have been a feature of the crisis are to be partly replaced with the sealed transport of carcasses to a rendering plant in Cheshire.

The giant pyres have proved difficult to organise and slaughtered stock have been left to rot on farmland for days at a time.

In another concession, to farmers not affected by the disease, animals suffering welfare problems, such as ewes that are lambing or cows that need milking, will be able to be moved limited distances under special licence.

Staff from the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (Maff) are still trying to trace hundreds of livestock movements that spread the disease in the days before restrictions were imposed last month.

"We are seeing a second wave of infection that we knew we would see," Mr Scudamore said. "We have contained it, but some of the disease has not manifested itself.

"The number of sheep moving on to a farm with the disease might have been very small, perhaps one or two animals, and those could take up to 14 days to develop the disease and spread it. Then more animals take up the disease and spread that. One sheep could have infected 100 animals."

The new cases were predominantly due to movement of sheep before 23 February, he said, adding: "While we know where it's come from, we can say it's contained." But Mr Scudamore said he did not know when the number of cases might start to decline.

A total of 73,000 animals have now been slaughtered while a further 27,000 will also be culled.