rigorousintuition.ca

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) -- Police shut down 10 blocks of businesses in the heart of downtown Austin early Monday after dozens of birds were found dead.

Emergency workers donned yellow hazardous-material suits, and dozens of fire trucks and ambulances were parked nearby, as they began testing for any sort of environmental contaminant or gas or chlorine leaks that might have cause the bird deaths. (...)

The closure - on the eve of the state's 80th legislative session - came after 40 to 60 carcasses were found overnight along Congress between Sixth and Eighth streets. There were no reports of humans harmed.

Police closed the main north-south route through downtown and all side streets for a block to the east and west while crews tested for environmental contaminants or gas or chlorine leaks, Austin Police spokeswoman Toni Chovanetz said.


(...)

Valadez said the tests will be looking for signs of poisoning or viral infections - though he said officials do not think bird flu is involved.

Early-morning passers-by said the birds first began acting strange – wandering aimlessly in the street – and then dropping like flies.