China's Ministry of Agriculture announced Monday that quarantine has been lifted for two areas hit by the H5N1 strain of bird flu, where the virus has been removed.

The areas are Chenzhou City in central Hunan Province, Maogang District of Maoming City in southern Guangdong Province, raising the number of bird flu-affected places out of isolation to 27 on the Chinese mainland.

No new bird flu cases had been detected in these areas for 21 successive days since the last birds in the areas were destroyed, according to the ministry.

Experts in animal epidemics and officials concluded after inspections that the disease had been eradicated in these two areas and they met the requirements for the lifting of isolation orders as stipulated in the Emergency Countermeasures Against Avian Influenza and the Technical Standards Regarding the Fight Against Avian Influenza.

The ministry urged local governments and animal epidemic prevention and control organizations to remain vigilant and continue supervision to prevent new cases.

The ministry said it had received no reports of new suspected or confirmed bird flu cases Monday. There has been no reports of suspected bird flu cases anywhere on the Chinese mainland for 14 days in a row since Feb. 17.

The Chinese mainland lifted the quarantine on its first bird flu-affected area in Dingdang Town of Long'an County in southwest autonomous region of Guangxi on Feb. 22.

(Xinhua News Agency March 1, 2004)