More than 232 head of cattle have been infected with the disease in five communes and wards of the Dien Bien and Muong Cha districts and in Dien Bien Phu city, bringing the total number of infected cattle in Dien Bien province to 717.

Cao Thi Tuyen Lan, head of the Dien Bien provincial Department of Animal Health, said foot-and-mouth disease has become more troubling as it has spread rapidly in the province. Most affected areas are located in mountainous and remote districts where local people often have free-range cattle.

To prevent the disease from spreading, local authorities have banned the transporting, slaughtering or trading of cattle in infected areas. The Dien Bien provincial People’s Committee has established checkpoints to quickly detect new outbreaks of the disease.

Agencies are helping people sterilize breeding farms and stepping up all measures to curb the spread of the disease.