The latest victim, 39, fell ill on January 6 and was subsequently admitted to hospital in Guiyang – capital of Guizhou province – where his condition rapidly deteriorated, Tests on the patient before he died confirmed he had contracted the H5N1 virus
"So far, 71 people who had close contact with the victim have not developed abnormal symptoms," the health department said.He is the second man to die from bird flu in China in less than a month, after a bus driver in the southern province of Guangdong passed away from the disease on December 31.
Concerns about avian influenza have risen across southeast Asia after China in late December reported its first fatality from the H5N1 virus in 18 months.
