A variant of the virus caused disease in people in 1997, when there was a small but deadly outbreak in Hong Kong. Eighteen people had confirmed diagnoses, and six of them died. Since then, there have been sporadic cases around the world—but no large outbreaks.

With reports of the first human death from bird flu in the US, some Americans are feeling an uncomfortable flashback to the early days of Covid-19, when infectious disease experts were talking about a new virus that was sending people to the hospital with respiratory infections.

Those most likely to get infected are usually people who are in close contact with birds, such as poultry workers. The strains that can impact humans include A (H5N1) or A (H7N9), with H5N1 responsible for the first bird flu death in the US. Bird flu symptoms tend to appear three to five days after you’ve been exposed and infected by the virus.

The time for urgency, the experts say, is now.

The United States has reported its first human death from H5N1 bird flu, marking a somber moment in the ongoing outbreak of the virus. The Louisiana Department of Health announced in a statement on Monday that a patient over the age of 65,

Hundreds of Canadian geese have been found dead this winter in Owatonna, Albert Lea, Waseca and other southern Minnesota cities.

The U.S. will rebuild a stockpile of bird flu vaccines for poultry that match the strain of the virus circulating in commercial flocks and wild birds, the Department of Agriculture said on Wednesday,