Sichuan girl is 18th victim of bird flu

An eight-year-old girl in Sichuan province has been diagnosed with the H5N1 strain of bird flu, the Ministry of Health announced on its website last night, bringing the mainland's total number of cases in humans to 18.

Poultry had recently died at the Suining home of the girl, who started developing symptoms of fever and pneumonia on April 16 and tested positive for the H5N1 strain yesterday. She is being treated at a local hospital.

Sichuan health officials put people who had been in close contact with the girl under observation but all have remained without symptoms. The Ministry of Health said it had informed the World Health Organisation and the Hong Kong government about the latest case.

The announcement follows a case that surfaced in Hubei earlier this month. Security guard Lai Mingliang, 21, developed symptoms of H5N1 on April 1, making him the fourth human infection in an urban area on the mainland.

Preliminary analysis suggested Mr Lai might have contracted the disease outside Wuhan .