Goyang Reports Additional Foot-and-Mouth Disease Case in a Week... Emergency in Densely Populated Livestock Area

Disaster Response Headquarters Operating 24/7, All-Out Efforts to Contain the Outbreak
All-Out Effort to Contain the Spread... 96% Vaccination Rate Achieved
"Mobilizing Public, Private, and Military Resources for Disease Control... Swift Response"

A second case of foot-and-mouth disease has been reported at a Korean native cattle farm in Goyang Special City, Gyeonggi Province, following the initial outbreak on February 19.

Goyang City, making every effort to block the spread of the second foot-and-mouth disease outbreak. Provided by Goyang City

On February 26 at 9:10 a.m., suspected symptoms such as drooling calves and loss of appetite were reported at a Korean native cattle farm in Goyang. Subsequently, the Gyeonggi Province Animal Hygiene Testing Laboratory conducted an inspection at 11:30 a.m., and by 11:00 p.m., the farm received a positive diagnosis for foot-and-mouth disease.

The farm raises 123 head of Korean native cattle and completed foot-and-mouth disease vaccinations on February 21. In accordance with the Ministry of Agriculture’s guidelines, quarantine authorities will collect samples and conduct detailed inspections of all cattle at the farm on February 27, and will proceed with the culling of animals confirmed positive. The city plans to install additional movement control posts, deploy dedicated disinfection vehicles for intensive sanitation, and strengthen preventive measures, including the application of quicklime.

This farm is located within 500 meters of the site where the first case of foot-and-mouth disease in Goyang occurred on February 19. Within a 3-kilometer radius of the first farm, there are 26 livestock farms with a total of 5,463 animals. Notably, within a 500-meter radius, there are seven Korean native cattle farms raising 611 head, leading to a dense concentration of livestock. Experts assess that the high density of livestock farms increases the risk of farm-to-farm transmission and makes disease control more challenging.

Since February 20, the city has been operating the Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters around the clock to respond to the foot-and-mouth disease outbreak. Led by the mayor, the headquarters consists of the General Situation Team, Disease Control Team, Disaster Support Team, Environmental Maintenance Team, Human Infection Response Team, Public Relations Support Team, and Collaboration Support Team, all established to ensure a prompt response posture. The Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters will remain in operation until the crisis alert is lifted.

Goyang City, Full Effort to Prevent the Spread of the Second Foot-and-Mouth Disease Outbreak. Provided by Goyang City

To prevent the spread of foot-and-mouth disease, the city began emergency mass vaccinations on February 20. As of February 27, vaccinations have been completed for 13,840 out of 14,408 livestock (cattle, pigs, goats) at 187 farms citywide, achieving a 96% vaccination rate. Of these, 7,978 out of 8,142 cattle have been vaccinated, with a vaccination rate of 98%.

Additionally, the Goyang City Agricultural Technology Center is operating a base disinfection facility, where vehicles are disinfected and disinfection certificates are checked. Movement control posts have been set up near the affected farms to control entry and exit, as well as to carry out disinfection. In cooperation with military units, livestock cooperatives, agricultural cooperatives, and public health centers, the city has deployed 17 disinfection vehicles and one disease control drone daily to the affected sites, and is conducting surveillance activities for all 187 farms, including phone calls and disinfection guidance text messages.

An official from Goyang City stated, "Although we have completed 96% of the emergency vaccinations and are operating the Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters around the clock, the high density of livestock farms in the affected area increases both the risk of spread and the difficulty of disease control. We will concentrate our disease prevention resources through cooperation between the public sector, private sector, and military, and make every effort to swiftly and thoroughly block further spread of the outbreak."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.