Warning over chickens after farms swamped
Members of the public have been warned that they could become sick with diarrhoea if they cook chicken carcasses.
The warning follows news that millions of chickens were killed in farms at Ayutthaya by massive flooding.
Public Health Minister Witthaya Buranasiri yesterday asked the Health Department and the Natural Resources and Environment Minister to help get rid of the bad stench caused by millions of chicken carcasses in large farms in Ayutthaya’s Bang Pa-In district, which have been underwater for a month.
“People should not take any chicken carcass for chicken [to eat],” Witthaya warned.
Millions of chickens drowned after the farms were submerged by flood water. Most of their bodies were stuck in the “closed” farms, but the decaying carcasses were now causing a bad stench.
“We are now asking the Natural Resources and Environment Ministry to sanitise water around the chicken farms, by using EM liquid,” the health minister said.
EM refers to Effective Micro-organisms, which would be used to break down toxic materials in the carcasses.
People were advised to keep chicken carcasses in a trash bag or well-wrapped in a plastic bag, and give them to livestock officials so they can get rid of the bodies without causing any health problems.
Witthaya warned people – especially children – not to swim near chicken farms where millions of chickens died.
Meanwhile, deputy minister Torphong Chaiyasarn said over 92,300 people in 32 provinces were suffering mental health problems because of the floods. Some 3,706 were stressed and 5,313 had depression. About 727 were at risk of committing suicide and 1,091 had to be followed closely because people had severe mental health symptoms.
Torphong, speaking as he visited factories in flooded areas, said most workers were stressed about credit card debts.
“Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra told me she would ask the business sector to help workers by allowing them to pay in instalments for three to six months,” he said.
