SOUTH AFRICA
FOOT AND MOUTH CRISIS
Sept 2000 - 25 MINS
2’13
INTRODUCTORY LINK:
"Tonight on Special Assignment we bring you an exclusive behind-the- scenes report on South Africa's heroic race against time... to stop the outbreak of one the world's most contagious animal diseases. Found only in the Kruger National Park, Foot & Mouth Disease has not been seen in the rest of South Africa for more than forty years."
2’48
Voice Over 1.
This is the first sign that something is wrong in KwaZulu-Natal... a massive control programme is underway to stop a disease that strikes fear in farmers hearts.
Foot and Mouth disease doesn't affect humans... but the effect on animals is catastrophic. It's highly contagious... and can infect entire herds of livestock in days. The impact on the farming industry can be devastating...
All these people from across South Africa have been called in to battle the disease….
3’49
TITLE: The Dead Zone
a report by Anneliese Burgess
V/O 2.
3’58
It began here, a little more than six weeks ago...on a farm near Camperdown outside Pietermartizburg. Foot and Mouth disease was diagnosed... after 70 pigs died mysteriously. It was a strain never seen before in South Africa... Type-O. It's suspected that the virus came into the country in kitchen waste... offloaded from a ship in Durban harbour in these containers. The contaminated swill was fed to pigs.
4’24
Foot and Mouth disease is the most feared animal disease in the world... affecting animals like pigs, cattle, goats & sheep. It spreads incredibly quickly... especially amongst pigs. Animals get blister-like lesions around their mouths and hooves.
It makes intensive farming uneconomical. Developed countries are quick to ban imports from infected countries. This makes a speedy response crucial.
The outbreak on Farm1 set in motion a dramatic sequence of events. Louien Edwards and her right hand man, Kevin Le Roux, were the first team on the scene ...
4’48
INTERVIEW UPSOUNDS: Louien & Kevin
Kevin Le Roux
We got to a pen where there were lots of little pigs, and those pigs were in a pretty bad state.
Dr Louien Edwards
We did post-mortems on five pigs, it wasn’t until next morning that we started to suspect foot and mouth.
Kevin Le Roux
E had to take everything we did from then very seriously. Like disinfecting of samples and hands and feet and so on. Even the suspicion of a disease like this is enough to start implementing control measures to stop it spreading. We knew then that it was really, really serious and then everything sort of kicked into gear.
5’41
V/O 3
An immediate quarantine zone of 10 kilometres was set up around the infected farm... with a total ban on the movement of animals or animal products. Around that area... a further surveillance zone of twenty kilometres.
Reinforcements were called in from across the country. Dr Gideon Buchner the national director of Veterinary Services... together with his provincial counterparts, Dr Brian Weaver and Dr Roger Horner... They were to head the massive (disease) control effort that was about to swing into action.
6’08
INTERVIEW UPSOUND:
Dr Horner
The sense of urgency with regard to foot and mouth disease is as extreme as it can be, because it is one of the most important diseases of livestock throughout the world. So as soon as you get a confirmation of foot and mouth disease it literally means top priority all round.
Dr Bruchner
The fact that it is so highly contagious, countries that do not have the disease are very, very weary to reintroduce or introduce in that country, because that will affect their trading
Narend Singh MEC
To get yourself black listed is certainly not the thing that we want to know. So people must appreciate that this thing goes wider than South Africa. It has an impact on the rest of the world.
6’49
V/O 4
0900… Joint Operation Centre, Pietermaritzberg. This is the first of two daily briefings.
For the past four weeks, this has been the on-site nerve centre of the disease containment programme. Here farmers, vets, technicians, government officials, police, traffic officers and the army discuss the latest updates from the field.
Driving this huge logistical machine… that oversees all field actions... is Col Francois Schreuder.
7’30
Col Francois Schreuder
We are used to bug scale operations like this. We are used to organising and co-ordinating a big effort, especially where there’s other helpers involved as well. It isn’t something that we had to go and learn to do, it is within the scope of our deployment and in terms of what we are there for.
7’49
The heart of the control program focussed on stopping the spread of the virus. At this stage nobody knew if the virus had escaped from
Farm1... and nobody was taking any chances. To enforce the quarantine... Twenty roadblocks and decontamination checks operated around the clock...
From across the country, teams of vets and animal health technicians reported for duty... among them Dr Tiro Modungwa from the Free State. They were immediately deployed... to inspect every last cloven hoofed animal in the zone. They fanned out, taking blood and tissue samples. With an incubation period of seven days... time was of the essence...
8’30
At the provincial laboratory in Allerton, control technician Butch Bosch prepared the huge volume of samples coming in. From here they would be dispatched to the Onderstepoort Veterinary Institute in Pretoria... where the Foot and Mouth team was on full alert.
SA Airlink flew the samples free of charge to Johannesburg. A little more than an hour after being loaded onto the plane in Pietermaritzburg, the samples were handed to the quarantine master on the airport apron....
9’13
From here, they were rushed to Pretoria. Forty minutes on the highway... and the consignment was (at last) safely in the hands of the laboratory team. Every sample carried the threat of a fresh crisis... laboratory teams worked through the night to get their findings to Pietermaritzburg. For most of these technicians, it was their first experience of a foot and mouth outbreak in South Africa's free zone...
Back in Pietermartizburg the waiting game was on. At this decontamination point near the infected farm... every human body and every vehicle carried the threat of spreading the virus beyond the zone... Feet & wheels were disinfected. From here, two further checkpoints would do the same.
10’20
STANDUP & decontamination sequence.
We’ve just come out of the no go zone from one of the infected farms. I’m now goig to go through decontamination. I’ll enter this tent, my clothes will be removed and destroyed or washed in disinfectant, and I’ll go through a disinfectant decontamination shower.
10’57
Then disaster struck. Almost a week after the first outbreak, Onderstepoort found a second batch of positive samples... the disease had jumped onto the farm next door...presumably carried by human foot...
11’13
Karin Boshoff Senior Technician:
They said “It’s positive, what’s your result?” and we said “No, wait for another hour and then we will see.” So it was quite exciting, and then the typing came said it was type O.
11’24
Dr Wilna Vosloo Dep Dir: Onderstepoort
And everything was again what we usually say as screaming positive, because there was just so much virus in that sample that there was no doubt in our minds that it had been spread onto the next farm. Once you’ve diagnosed the disease it’s got such enormous ramifications, that you have to be extremely sure about your diagnosis.
11’45
The team in Pietermaritzburg knew what these ramifications were. The scientists knew that things had to be done by the book. Traumatic decisions were at hand... as shown in this University of Pretoria and Onderstepoort Veterinary Institute training video...
11’59
SHOW snippet of training video.
There are two fundamental approaches. The first is so called stamping out. Where in the event of a localised outbreak, all the inffected animals, and those in direct contact with them are killed in situe.
12’14
Dr Bruchner
It was a very difficult decision to make, but we realised if we want to put into place proper risk management, that is to exclude the risk factors that might still cause spread of diseases.
12’34
Quarantine alone was no longer an option... All cloven-hoofed animals on the second infected farm had to be killed and buried immediately: all in all about 60 stud cattle and more than 2500 pigs....
In order to stay ahead of the virus another hard decision was taken. To create a low risk area around the infection, all the pigs, goats, sheep and cattle in a three kilometer radius around the farm were also to be stamped out...
13’09
Dr Horner
They were given forms that they had to fill in, which in effect they were handing over the farm to the National Directory of Vertinary Services. And they had to sign those forms, we did a final stock count with the people, got their contact telephone numbers etc. and then it was really a question of saying, “we’re going to be back in forty eight/seventy two hours time”.
14’00
Standup:
We have now moved into the three kilometre zone around the epicentre of the outbreak. Here all cloven hoofed animals will be put down including those behind me. This is a small holding many of these animals are pets. It is an incredibly emotional time for farmers and for workers as they see their livelihood being destroyed. It is a crucial part of the containment programme.
14’24
This farmer watches bravely as his animals are killed... before being taken to a central burial site. When the team moved in, his wife took their little son off the farm. That morning the little boy had asked if they could hide his two pet calves in the house...
14’40
UPS: thuri
Dr Tiro Modungwa: State Veterinarian
They were crying and they rushed into the house. So you just let them go into the house and cry. There was nothing I could do.
15’09
Subtitles
Everything is gone. We then go on to Gateridge the animal farm. But that will go quickly, over.
Confirm everything has been shot at that farm.
No, I said we shouldn’t shoot because lorries are still here at Homely. As soon as the first loader is ready, we’ll go and shoot there, it’ll be quick… it’s along the road over.
Okay, that’s fine. How does the rest look?
No it went quickly. Here al the pigs and cattle are loaded, 25 to 30 pigs are left over.
Okay do you have enough people to help with the loading?
No, we’re fine, over.
Okay Ivan. Did the other people arrive?
They’ve just come.
Okay thanks.
16’20
Dr Gideon Bruckner
It is not easy to go to a farmer and tell him that you must do a certain thing for a certain purpose. And I think it was very traumatic for the farmers that I went to, but they all knew that we had to do that. I think the spirit, especially yesterday, Saturday when we had to kill all these other cattle, it was very traumatic, but the co-operation and the acceptance of the people that this was part and parcel of things that had to be done, I think was highly commendable.
16’47
For two days the culling teams moved from farm to farm... with the army giving logistical support...
.... the aim to create a low risk area with no cloven-hoofed animals in the vicinity of the infected farms...
At the central burial site the workers (had) worked through the nights to process the carcasses....
They're cut open... and then covered in lime and disinfectant...
Kevin Le Roux
After a while… you can never get used to killing animals, but it becomes a job, it becomes like inoculating, you know what you’re doing is for a good purpose and, so for us it was a job that e had to do and we didn’t really mind doing it, although sometimes it can make you feel a bit hollow. But that trauma that the farmers had to go through, loosing some of their friends, that was hard.
Dr Louien Edwards
I found it traumatic, because we’re trained to treat and save animals and to control diseases, not to just kill. And it was mass killing, and I think it was very traumatic. But we kept each other going.
Kevin Le Roux
It reminded me a bit of being in the military again. The whole day I just giving orders; do this, do that, clean this, take this, carry this down there. The whole day, and not for a single moment did any of them complain. And I’m really thankful for that, they were really amazing.
AD BREAK
18’24
Days after the culling, the terrible loss was evident...
Christine Varney had lost almost all the animals on her pet farm...
18’30
Christine Varney
I was absolutely distraught. Absolutely distraught. Absolutely distraught, there is no word for it. We have got very little to say, what can we say? We were not specialists, we were not taken to that meeting, we don’t know what was best . we did hat was best for everybody else. It was not best for us, but it was for the rest of the community to make sure these diseases doesn’t go somewhere else.
I left the farm, I couldn’t face it, so I left the farm. My son phoned me at about three o’clock and he says “It’s over, you can come back.” My first animal coming back here will be called Hope. And the second one will be called faith and the third one will be called determination. Because we are determined to get over this.
19’38
It was Wynand van Dyk who was hardest hit. He lost more than 2500 pigs. But it was the loss of his prize cattle that left him shell-shocked...
19’48
Wynand van Dyk: Farmer
I am horrified because I love those animals. These are not just normal animals, these are stud animals, which I’ve been building up for a number of years and I know them by name, they’re like my babies. So I didn’t want to believe, I thought maybe it’s something else. I thought maybe it’s poisoning or something which has got similar symptoms. But unfortunately, when they sent the samples away we knew the next day that this was definitely foot and mouth disease.
We also discussed, isn’t there the possibilities that we could keep the animals, and doctor them and get them right again. But because of the international pressure, and the problem with the disease the decision was taken to cull all animals. That’s all gone now, and I suppose I going to have to start again.
20’46
On Wynand's farm, the empty pig pens are a cruel reminder of his once thriving business. Even the stockpiled animal feed had to be destroyed. As the decontamination teams disinfect every nook and cranny, he knows he can only start thinking of farming again next year...
Back at the operation centre, more decisions were at hand…
21’45
Butch Bosch tested warthogs and antelope, the cloven hoofed animals of the wild... these tests would later come back negative
21’51
Dr Wilna Vosloo
We just haven’t had it for about forty years outside the reclining areas, so it’s really surprising, it’s been quite shocking, but it’s also been a good experience, because it’s shown us that we can all handle it. Field services can handle it and the laboratory can handle it.
22’10
CHOPPER SHOTS
Rumours abound... of stray animals hidden from the culling teams. Every story has to be checked out. In the days following the culling, there was intensive aerial surveillance of the new low risk area... the scientists also checking for the hidden danger of wind spreading the virus...
22’37
Dr Gideon Bruckner talks about AHT's
Well I think we’re all tired. I think that the critical thing was in the first seven days when it rained, everything was not in our favour. Every single crisis that happened it was on a weekend, but there were people here who worked through four, five days without stop, and those are the people who really worked. But we all tried to do what we had to do just to contain the disease, so our people, our animal health technicians especially are the people that really went full out. And those people that know this type of thing and they know what best to put on it.
23’02
Johan Shaw from Pretoria is one of the countless animal health technicians who are the unsung heroes of the battle against the virus. He prefers the field, but here everyone goes where they're needed most. Johan handles the storeroom ... where's he's co-ordinated the massive logistical needs of field teams... overalls, gumboots, testing kits, disinfectant sprays, washing powder..
23’25
UPS Johan Subtitles
Everybody is very tired… but we’re all very motivated. The idea is to root out this foot and mouth. Hours don’t matter to us.
23’41
FENCING VISUALS
Day after day, dedicated go through their paces. These fencing specialists came all the way from far Northern Province... ‘Til it's over, everyone -- from soldiers to civilians, from police to vets, from technicians to cooks -- will do their bit... in what has become a special form of national service.
23’58
MEC
Well it was really amazing, the South Africaners in all of us really emerged during that process, and if one has to talk about the rainbow nation, and the building of the nation, this exercise certainly brought nation building out in all of us.
24’11
Dr THOMSON
I’m very impressed with what the people have done here. You can see there’s good integration as Dr Bruckner said with his security forces and logistical support. I’m very impressed with the way it’s been approached and the success which has so far been achieved. Whether it’s a total success at this stage it’s difficult to say, but all the signs are there that it is.
24’34
But what is the price of failure? We’d lose our status as a Foot-and-mouth-free-zone. Blacklisting… a ban on all agricultural produce. This could cost the country more than R2 billion a year...
But for NOW… knowing how this virus came into the country, is the next crucial step in the battle...
24’52
Dr Mogojane: Agricultural Production
If ever the source of the infection came in through importation or illegal importation we need to determine that. There might be a possibility that we are getting a different form of a virus outbreaks throughout the world because there are outbreaks in Japan, Korea, Mongolia, Brazil, Argentina and Colombia.
25’15
Standup
This is the final checkpoint inside the three kilometre no go zone next to the two farms where the outbreak occurred. Behind me you can see the partially covered graves where the culled animals were disposed of. what will happen now, is that the army will move in, these graves ill be covered with wire and patrolled to ensure that the contaminated meat is not removed, and then the waiting game begins.
25’39
In the meantime, the tireless work is far from over. State Vet, Dr Dumisane Mtshali heads up the extension services to the rural areas ... his work may only just be starting...
25’50
Dr Mtshali
We shall be getting to the plane and drop these Zulu pamphlets for the community to be able to read what our intentions, what we are trying to do. They’re extremely worried, they want to find out for how long they’ve been living under this constant that they’ve been subjected to, and that is difficult to tell until we know what is the last infection that we picked up, and it is only then that we shall be able to tell them. We shall be in the process for so many numbers of days and then after that we can go back to our normal life.
26’21
But....last week, a third infection inside the 10km quarantine zone was identified. Another 16 cattle and four goats were put down. Since then, samples continued testing negative. (Pause)
The containment programme at Camperdown goes on...