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Bird flu "Xray" teams led by the head of the provincial livestock office, Panom Meesiripan, started their operation in that district as poultry farming is more intensive there than in other districts.

Pichai district is also considered a highrisk area as it adjoins Sukhothai, where health officials detected the H5N1 strain of avian influenza virus in dead fowl in late October.

Panom said the bird flu inspection team found that villagers still practised an inappropriate type of poultry farming, letting chickens and ducks roam freely. In the cold season, poultry are more susceptible to bird flu.

Three bird flu operations teams would examine every village for information on epidemic diseases in poultry and keep checking and disinfecting farms in every village for six months until next May, he said.

Villagers were told to alert officials immediately whenever any poultry dies from unknown causes.

Nearby Phichit is also keeping a close watch in its 12 districts although bird flu has not been spotted in the province since 2006.

Provincial public health official Prajak Wattanakul admitted that the cool weather was a factor, which could trigger the potentially deadly virus in the area.

He reassured the public that if bird flu reemerges, the province could quickly control the outbreak as preventive measures have been constantly implemented.