Anthrax Plague Resurfacing?

[Hervé]

(http://www.thelocal.se/20160802/anthrax-outbreak-kills-nine-animals-in-sweden)Anthrax outbreak kills nine animals in Sweden (http://www.thelocal.se/20160802/anthrax-outbreak-kills-nine-animals-in-sweden)

Published: 02 Aug 2016 07:33 GMT+02:00



http://www.thelocal.se/userdata/images/article/w468/233683a6ec2d98c9efe4ceb5193576709e11f00d8bf311ba2c126d70ba9bf907.jpg (http://www.thelocal.se/20160802/anthrax-outbreak-kills-nine-animals-in-sweden)
File photo of livestock on a separate farm. Photo: Fredrik Sandberg/TT


(http://www.thelocal.se/20160802/anthrax-outbreak-kills-nine-animals-in-sweden#) (http://reddit.com/submit?url=http://www.thelocal.se/20160802/anthrax-outbreak-kills-nine-animals-in-sweden&title=)
Swedish authorities are investigating an anthrax outbreak at farms in central Sweden.


Bleeding cadaver leads to Swedish anthrax find (http://www.thelocal.se/20131101/anthrax-found-on-dead-cow-at-swedish-farm) (01 Nov 13)
Outbreak prompts probe of old anthrax cases (http://www.thelocal.se/20110727/35184) (27 Jul 11)
Swedish farm hit by anthrax outbreak (http://www.thelocal.se/20081213/16332) (13 Dec 08)

Eight cattle and a horse on separate farms near Omberg in the Östergötland region have died from splenic fever, as it is also called, after the first case of anthrax was confirmed by agricultural experts last month.

They are located a couple of kilometres apart, and officials from Sweden's National Veterinary Institute are currently working on vaccinating livestock and tracing the source of the infection.

“It is of course a loss to the owner of the animals and a concern for the surrounding area. We know that there is an increased risk that each case could spread locally,” Karl Ståhl told the Swedish newswire TT.

It has not been confirmed what caused the outbreak, but there have been other incidents in the region during the 20th century.

An elk which was found dead in the area in 1927 carried the infection, according to the National Veterinary Institute.

Traces of the bacteria that cause the infection can survive for decades.

“Back in the days so-called anthrax graves were common. You simply dug a hole for the cows that died and in connection with earth works the infection could spread again, but it could also be because of infection from wild animals,” said Ståhl.

Authorities are urging people to report dead deer or elk to the Swedish Board of Agriculture.

Sweden has had four outbreaks of the serious infection among cattle since 2008, but prior to that no case had been discovered since 1981.

Humans can be infected if they have close contact with animals who are dying of the disease, or have died, but it is extremely uncommon, especially in Sweden. The last case among humans was in 1965.

[Hervé]

Massive anthrax outbreak kills 1,500 deer in Russia; largest for 75 years (http://www.globalmeatnews.com/Safety-Legislation/Massive-anthrax-outbreak-wounds-Russia-s-venison-sector)

Vladislav Vorotnikov
Global Meat (http://www.globalmeatnews.com/Safety-Legislation/Massive-anthrax-outbreak-wounds-Russia-s-venison-sector) Thu, 28 Jul 2016 14:36 UTC




https://www.sott.net/image/s16/333977/large/Massive_anthrax_outbreak_wound.jpg (https://www.sott.net/image/s16/333977/full/Massive_anthrax_outbreak_wound.jpg)
Russia is keeping one eye on its venison as vets warn the virus area could increase




An outbreak of anthrax has killed 1,500 northern deer in Russia and, with the figure set to rise, fears over exports of venison have begun to surface.

The anthrax outbreak in the Yamal Peninsula, the Arctic part of Russia, is believed to be the largest for 75 years. To fight against the disease, Russia has applied unprecedented measures, including the evacuation of farmers and their families.

Local veterinary services believe the disease probably emanated from animal burial sites - and some pastures where animals have been grazing will be banned for livestock use for the next 25 years.

"This disease has been present in our country for a long time and we have 35,000 officially registered animals with anthrax in burial sites," said Julia Demina, deputy head of Russian sanitary body Rospotrebnadzor. "These are the places where anthrax spores could be found in the soil."

13 people hospitalised
"We are now conducting another large burial, where we will pour bleach [into the ground], build fences and set up a special marker in navigation systems, so that, for the next 25 years, any grazing of agricultural animals here will be banned," added Vyacheslav Hritin, head of Salekhard Veterinary Center, which spends a considerable amount of time fighting against the disease.

So far, at least 13 people are reported to have been hospitalised, thanks to anthrax contamination.

Scientists said it was probable that this latest outbreak was connected to abnormal heat, which resulted in melting the permafrost where spores of anthrax can live for decades. At the moment, temperatures in the region are going over 30°C, which is very unusual for this area of Russia.

Officials in damage limitation mode
"On the one hand the permafrost began to melt, on the other the animals were short of fodder and they ate the plants together with the land," explained Professor Irina Donnik, rector of the Ural State Agricultural University. "It is obvious that there was a cattle cemetery here at some stage. This disease is transmitted very rarely from animal to animal; more often it moves via the feed base."

In total, Yamal Peninsula has nearly 700,000 head of northern deer, of which only 480,000 are vaccinated, according to official information from the local veterinary service. The region supplies meat to most parts of Russia and has exported at least 500 tonnes of venison to Europe, as well as some shipments to other parts of the world. Despite the concerns of experts, local officials have denied any possibility that the outbreak will hurt export supplies.

"There is not even a small chance that contaminated meat could get into the slaughter complexes, as each shipment is tested individually in accordance to the highest standards," stated Natalia Khlopunova, press-secretary for the governor of Yamal Peninsula Dmitri Kobylkin. "It is in our interests that the meat we supply for export has the highest quality, as always."

Several insiders have said that the disease has already claimed more than 3,000 head of deer and there are still several herds in the quarantine zone. In addition, ecologists have warned that there are already scavengers eating the dead animals, so unless active measures are taken by the local veterinary authorities, the area where the disease has spread could grow significantly within the next couple of weeks.

[Hervé]

Eight anthrax cases confirmed in Yamal — authorities (http://tass.ru/en/society/891818)

Society & Culture (http://tass.ru/en/society) August 01, 11:32 UTC+3

According to the local authorities, a total of 72 people, including 41 children have been hospitalized from the area, where the outbreak of anthrax has been identified


https://cdn2.tass.ru/width/744_b12f2926/tass/m2/en/uploads/i/20160801/1141595.jpg
© Valeriy Matytsin/TASS


YEKATERINBURG, August 1. /TASS/. Eight nomads, including three children, in the Yamal-Nenets autonomous area have tested positive for anthrax according to the governor’s press service.

"Laboratory tests have confirmed that eight patients, among them three youngsters, have contracted anthrax. All patients are currently in intensive care. Preventive measures are being taken," the press office reported.

According to the local authorities, a total of 72 people, including 41 children have been hospitalized from the area, where the outbreak of anthrax has been identified.

"In all other patients, anthrax has not been confirmed. Most of the hospitalized nomads have tested negative. All of them are in the district hospital in Salekhard," the service said.

The outbreak in Yamal so far has killed a total of 2,300 reindeer, regional authorities stated on Monday.


Related:
Two anthrax cases reported in Armenia (http://tass.ru/en/world/812611)
Anthrax-infected beef poses no threat to Russian consumers — watchdog (http://tass.ru/en/economy/758098)
Russian consumer watchdog bans beef products from Europe due to anthrax threat (http://tass.ru/en/economy/758065)

[Carmody]

Scientists said it was probable that this latest outbreak was connected to abnormal heat, which resulted in melting the permafrost where spores of anthrax can live for decades. At the moment, temperatures in the region are going over 30°C, which is very unusual for this area of Russia.

This is very bad, regarding the issue of methane release from permafrost.

[Sierra]

Scientists said it was probable that this latest outbreak was connected to abnormal heat, which resulted in melting the permafrost where spores of anthrax can live for decades. At the moment, temperatures in the region are going over 30°C, which is very unusual for this area of Russia.

This is very bad, regarding the issue of methane release from permafrost.

It is not just anthrax...

Copy of a post by Bill Ryan, sent to him by Henry Deacon: http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?79906-The-critical-methane-problem-we-all-face&p=1084161&viewfull=1%23post1084161

.
From http://interestingengineering.com/siberian-soil-bounces-random-craters-forming-going (and other sites):

Siberian Soil Bounces and Random Craters are Forming – What is Going On?

Have you ever been walking through the park and all of the sudden the ground beneath your feet becomes like a bouncy house? Well, that exact thing is happening in the Siberian soils (http://interestingengineering.com/engineering/) this hot summer and it could mean bad things for the environment. A group of research scientists exploring Belyy Island off Siberia’s Yamal Peninsula discovered large areas of bouncy soil, caused by trapped pockets of methane and carbon dioxide. The country is undergoing an unusually hot summer this year, and it is believed that the gas was previously frozen deep underground. You can check out the trippy video below.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=06Xc3LtZRWo
Most of the Siberian soils are made up of a high-density organic matter which has been compacted over thousands of years, according to Gizmodo (http://gizmodo.com/this-bouncy-siberian-soil-is-a-troubling-sign-for-our-p-1784033816). As the organic matter is broken down, methane and carbon dioxide are released only to become trapped in the ground. The hot summer Siberia is currently experiencing has melted some of the thick permafrost, which allowed the gasses to percolate to the surface.

One of the biggest fears around this odd release of gasses is the continued rise in global temperatures. As the gas released was mostly methane, which has an 84 percent higher warming potential over CO2, researchers fear that this release of gasses could only make things worse. Other than the bouncy soils, locals are also finding gigantic craters appearing overnight in the region. It is believed that these are caused by gas pockets that were frozen in ice, suddenly bursting, and giving way to the soil overhead. Either way, there are some crazy things going on beneath the Siberian soil.