Overview
- Spain’s national reference lab in Algete confirmed H5N1 in a dead seagull collected in Castro Urdiales, marking the first detection in Cantabria.
- The regional government has temporarily halted authorizations for avian fairs, markets, exhibitions, and outdoor bird gatherings, and urges the public to report dead or sick birds to 112 without touching them.
- No infections have been detected in domestic poultry in Cantabria, with passive surveillance ongoing and special-risk and special-vigilance municipalities designated.
- The One Health group of Spain’s emergency medicine society (SEMES) advises emergency departments to be ready to detect, isolate, and notify potential human cases.
- Risk assessments remain very low for the general population and low for occupational exposure, as Spain continues to record poultry and wild-bird outbreaks since July, with no EU human cases since 2024 and 94 human cases worldwide through May 2025.