Foot and Mouth Outbreak

[Chipstick]

Not again

Breaking news on News24 - its in Surrey

The diseased cows have been killed already, surely?

Another possible outbreak I hope its a false alarm.

lou33 - all my district councils website does is refer to the defra site. I did hope to see some guidance about walking through the area but there doesnt seem to be any.

waverley says footpaths in restricted areas are closed

This is really

If it turns out a US corporation is the cause of the outbreak I hope bureaucratic heads roll. If biosecurity could not be maintained at this "category 4" lab, the highest possible level, what about the other diseases that they handle, that are lethal to humans?

News update - does this suggest deliberate action to spread the disease?

"The official investigation into the foot and mouth outbreak has said there is a "strong probability" the strain originated from the Pirbright laboratory facility.

...Inspectors said there was a "real possibility" the disease was spread by human movement..."

Very doubtful it was malicious - there would be far more efective ways of spreading F+M than that. If it has come from Pirbright (which is a govt lab as well as an evil American corporation) it will be down to laziness or carelessness.

True Callisto - perhaps the suggestions of sabotage are a way of avoiding liability on the lab's part? If their negligence resulted in this outbreak and the destruction of livelihoods, they would presumably be liable.

If sabotage is an accepted explanation, the individual(s) responsible would be liable. I am waiting for this to be blamed on terrorism, but surely if they could deliberately spread the disease close to the lab they could cause more misery by also spreading it further afield?

If it is really just carelessness and negligence in a category 4 facility you have to wonder about the human diseases that are tested in these labs and the risks posed.

I know that i don't understand all the ins and out of how foot and month is spread.

But surely when they announced that this form of the virus which had not been seen for 40+years in farm animals, but they happen to be working at Pirbright on a antidote/antivirus using this strain in the weeks prior to the outbreak.

I haven't heard anything about sabotage - listened to the R4 report and the Pirbright statement this morning and neither mentioned terrorism or sabotage afaik.

I read about the suspected sabotage in the Times www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article2218183.ece

my local paper said they were checking a farm in weybridge for foot and mouth i live fight near it, oh well im n ot a keen meat eater, hope its not air born!

Unless you have cloven hoofs you should not be at any real risk from foot and mouth. Much of the meat we import is said to be contaminated with it.

The tragedy here is for the farmers who have lost their livelihoods.