--- description: The authorities have ordered preventative culls and quarantines in the country's first bird-flu outbreak in eight months title: Bird-Flu Outbreak Hits Japan image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt28b653ee48093a5b/69876f02e53aba67274d6907/82114202.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Japanese PM Orders 'Thorough Measures' After First Bird Flu Outbreak in 8 Months by [Rishi Iyengar](/author/rishi-iyengar/) ## Rishi Iyengar Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Dec 16, 2014 3:10 AM CUT  Chicken farm Chicken farmMIXA—Getty Images/MIXA by [Rishi Iyengar](/author/rishi-iyengar/) ## Rishi Iyengar Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Dec 16, 2014 3:10 AM CUT Japan [ordered the culling](http://news.yahoo.com/japan-orders-chicken-cull-bird-flu-outbreak-003147994.html;%5Fylt=AwrBJSB0f49U.0MAzu%5FQtDMD "undefined") of about 4,000 chickens Tuesday following an outbreak of avian influenza at one of the country’s poultry farms. The owner of the farm in the country’s southwest reported that 20 of his birds died suddenly over the weekend, following which a DNA test revealed the presence of the H5 strain of the bird flu virus, AFP reported. The affected farm, located in Miyazaki prefecture on the island of Kyushu, has been locked down along with several others surrounding it. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe ordered “thorough measures for epidemic prevention” in what is the country’s first confirmed bird-flu outbreak since April. \[[_AFP_](http://news.yahoo.com/japan-orders-chicken-cull-bird-flu-outbreak-003147994.html;%5Fylt=AwrBJSB0f49U.0MAzu%5FQtDMD "undefined")\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3635277/bird-flu-outbreak-japan-chicken-culling/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3635277/bird-flu-outbreak-japan-chicken-culling/"},"headline":"Japanese PM Orders 'Thorough Measures' After First Bird Flu Outbreak in 8 Months","datePublished":"2014-12-16T03:10:09.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T02:53:18.216Z","description":"Poultry culled and affected farms quarantined","url":"https://time.com/3635277/bird-flu-outbreak-japan-chicken-culling/","keywords":["Shinzo Abe","Japan","Bird Flu","Chickens"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt28b653ee48093a5b/69876f02e53aba67274d6907/82114202.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Rishi Iyengar","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/rishi-iyengar/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt28b653ee48093a5b/69876f02e53aba67274d6907/82114202.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"82114202","caption":"82114202","creditText":"MIXA—Getty Images/MIXA","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3635277/bird-flu-outbreak-japan-chicken-culling/","name":"Japanese PM Orders 'Thorough Measures' After First Bird Flu Outbreak in 8 Months"}}]}] ```