Gov`t confirms H1N1 infection at local pig farm

The government on Tuesday confirmed that pigs at a swine farm in Jeolla Province in the country`s southwest have contracted type-A influenza, according to Yonhap News.

The latest discovery in Jeongeup, about 300 kilometers south of Seoul, marks the 16th outbreak reported at pig farms across the country since Dec. 14 when five farms were found to have sick pigs, the Ministry of Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said.

"The infected pigs probably got sick by coming into contact with humans," an official said. He said all pigs from the infected farm will be barred from being moved for three weeks as decontamination efforts are to be carried out in the area.

Korea has been on high alert since the disease was first detected among humans here in May, with over 100 deaths attributed to the disease since mid-August. Before this month the highly pathogenic H1N1 flu virus was only discovered in humans.