Concern over the death of a Chinese man in Jiangsu Province of avian flu prompted the Hong Kong government to put in place measures that will avert a health crisis brought about by disease outbreaks. On Thursday, the state's legislature will grant broad powers to the Health Minister to address health emergencies. Under the bill, the Health Minister is granted authority to seize any object suspected to be an infectious agent and to detain anyone believed to be disease carriers for isolation, quarantine or examination. He may also arrest people who flee from medical detention.

A 24-year-old man in the mainland died on Sunday from bird flu, although he has no known contact with dead or infected poultry. Hong Kong is initiating broad measures to prevent a repeat of the 2004 pandemic spread of the SARS ailment in the Special Administrative Region

A top World Bank Official on Tuesday said the possible bird flu pandemic could cost countries around the world some $2 trillion.

Peter Harrold, acting Vice President of the World Bank, said, "The global economic costs could be between 1.5 to two trillion dollars

A 24-year-old man in east China was confirmed to be the 17th bird flu victim who died Sunday, making it the country's latest fatality from the H5N1 virus, report said.

According to Jiangsu provincial health department, the victim was hospitalized last Tuesday after he was diagnosed with pneumonia

Polish Agriculture Minister Marek Sawicki said Monday the bird flu virus detected last week on a turkey farm near Plock is under control. The H5N1 virus was traced to two villages, Uniejewo and Mysliborzyce, near central Poland.

A leading meat company said it received a delivery of 5,500 birds under consignment. Eight percent were dead or in bad condition, while three were found to have the bird flu virus. But at least 661 pounds (300 kilograms) of infected meat, possibly contaminated with the virus, may already be in retail outlets

In the event of a bird flu or SARS pandemic, handwashing and wearing masks, gloves and gowns are effective in preventing the spread of respiratory viruses than prescribing antiviral drugs, according to a new report in the British Medical Journal (BMJ).

The use of vaccines and antiviral drugs will also be insufficient to interrupt the spread of influenza, the report said