America should have more aggressively intervened almost a year ago.

A variant of the virus caused disease in people in 1997, when there was a small but deadly outbreak in Hong Kong. Eighteen people had confirmed diagnoses, and six of them died. Since then, there have been sporadic cases around the world—but no large outbreaks.

With reports of the first human death from bird flu in the US, some Americans are feeling an uncomfortable flashback to the early days of Covid-19, when infectious disease experts were talking about a new virus that was sending people to the hospital with respiratory infections.

The first known death from a bird flu virus in the US has sparked fears about another pandemic, yet the overall risk to the general public still remains low

In its announcement this week of the first human death from bird flu in the United States, health officials in Louisiana were quick to note that the patient was over age 65 and “reported to have underlying medical conditions.

The CDC says the risk of bird flu to the general public is low, but public health experts say they are worried the virus could mutate and become more transmissible.

The United States has reported its first human death from H5N1 bird flu, marking a somber moment in the ongoing outbreak of the virus. The Louisiana Department of Health announced in a statement on Monday that a patient over the age of 65,

Hundreds of Canadian geese have been found dead this winter in Owatonna, Albert Lea, Waseca and other southern Minnesota cities.