The quarantine of areas hit by bird flu in northeast China's Liaoning Province has been lifted, the local government said yesterday.
The 21-day isolation has ended in Heishan County, Beining City; Nanzhan New District of Jinzhou City; and Fuxin Mongolian Autonomous County.
The three areas reported bird flu outbreaks in succession from November 3.
The national headquarters of bird flu control approved lifting the quarantine, said Zhou Liyuan, head of the provincial bird flu control headquarters.
No new bird flu cases were reported in the areas in the last 21 days, which is the longest incubation period for the H5N1 virus, Zhou said.
He said the epidemic zones had not reported any human cases.
Although the quarantine was lifted, veterinarians would continue to monitor the areas, Zhou said.
At the Taihe market in Heishan County, Li Jingsheng, a chicken dealer, smiled at the news about lifting the quarantine.
 "Of course it's good news, because I can sell chicken again," said Li, who began to sell pork instead of chicken on November 3 when the market banned chicken and egg sales.
Zhang Mingquan, head of the Duanjia Town in Heishan County, said his most important task is to help villagers cut their losses by raising livestock like pigs, cattle or sheep.
Liaoning has mobilized more than 20,000 veterinarians to help farmers inject vaccines for more than 300 million fowls.
(Xinhua)