South Korea remains on high alert for African swine fever... since the second case of the animal disease was confirmed on Wednesday... at a pig farm near the inter-Korean border.
Fortunately, no new cases have been reported over the past 24 hours or so.
However, the government plans to cull around one million pigs as a precautionary measure,... including those from the second confirmed farm and other farms located within a three kilometer radius.
While a 48-hour nationwide lockdown on all pig farms was lifted as of 6:30 AM Thursday,... a ban on pork shipments from six tightly-controlled-zones will remain in effect for the next three weeks.
At Incheon International Airport, a 24-hour emergency quarantine team has tightened baggage inspections.
The origin of the outbreak remains a mystery, but investigations are ongoing.
African swine fever is a highly contagious disease, fatal to pigs, but doesn't affect humans.
