African swine fever detected in Finland for first time

Finland has detected African swine fever for the first time, food health authorities said Friday, after preliminary tests found the disease in dead wild boars in the southeast of the country.

The Finnish Food Authority said the cases were found in Virolahti, near the border with Russia. It said the first case was identified on July 30 but did not say how many cases had been counted.

The agency has defined an infection zone around Virolahti and nearby areas. Three dead boars were found by a local resident, who contacted the authority.

African swine fever is harmless to humans but can be deadly for pigs and boars, with a mortality rate close to 100 percent.