SUSPECTED BIRD FLU DEATH IN CHINA

Huang Yanqing died after buying and cleaning nine ducks last month at a market in Hebei province, which borders Beijing, the report said. Her age was not known.

Xinhua quoted the Beijing Health Bureau as saying 116 people had been in close contact with Huang. One nurse had a fever but has since recovered, the report said.

The Ministry of Health reported the case to the World Health Organisation. A spokeswoman for the organisation in Beijing said that it did not have any further details.

Bird flu has killed 247 people worldwide since 2003, according to the WHO, including 20 in China out of 30 human cases.

The H5N1 bird flu virus continues to devastate poultry stocks around the world, and officials worry the virus could mutate into a much-feared form that could spread easily among people. It remains hard for people to catch, with most human cases linked to contact with infected birds.

Authorities in eastern China last month slaughtered more than 370,000 fowl after isolated cases of bird flu in chickens were reported.

China, which raises more poultry than any other country, has vowed to aggressively fight the virus.

Beijing officials instituted prevention measures, such as disinfecting and isolating Huang's home, Xinhua said.