Britain Hit by Another Foot-and-Mouth Disease Scare (1/2)

Just the mention of foot-and-mouth leaves many British farmers with a chill.
They know the severe impact the outbreak had in 2001 on rural communities and the billions it cost in lost revenues.

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown was on vacation when news of the outbreak came, but he returned Saturday to London, where he made a televised statement about government efforts to contain the disease.

"We will be doing, night and day, everything in our power to make sure that what happens, happens quickly and happens decisively in a way that can reassure people that everything is being done."

The disease was discovered on a farm near the town of Guildford, southwest of London. Sixty cattle were culled there Saturday. The action was much quicker than in 2001, when critics said the slow response by the government of then-Prime Minister Tony Blair allowed the virus to spread.

A three-kilometer exclusion zone " class="hjdict" word="exclusion zone " target=_blank>exclusion zone has been established around the affected farm as well as a ten-kilometer surveillance area.

The transportation of cattle, sheep and pigs has also been banned in Britain, and the European Union has imposed a ban on livestock imports from Britain in response to the outbreak.