Suspects identified in case of floating dead pigs

Two suspects have been directly linked to the discovery of dozens of dead pigs in the Yellow River.

Dozens of pig carcasses have been discovered in the section of the river in the Inner Mongolia autonomous region's Dalad Banner since Sunday, with some rotting in the water.

By Tuesday morning, 48 dead pigs had been collected, the banner's government said.

Two suspects were identified and accountability procedures have been launched by the banner's discipline inspection and supervision commissions.

It did not reveal more details about the two suspects.

In an interview with China Comment, a magazine run by Xinhua News Agency, an official from the banner's government said on Tuesday that another six suspects are under investigation.

Staff from the banner's center for disease control and prevention have disinfected the carcasses and the area where they were discovered, China Comment reported on Tuesday.

"All hog farms within 3 kilometers of the site have been checked and samples we've collected from those farms have been sent to the inspection and quarantine department," the center said.

As the case triggered concerns over water safety, the local disease control and environment departments took water samples in nearby residential areas for further testing.

"Epidemiological surveys were also conducted among local residents," the official said, adding that safety checks had been conducted in the banner's pork markets.

Apart from the dead pigs, 17 dead goats and one dead cow were also found in the section of the river, the official told China Comment. Investigations into the dead livestock are ongoing.

"We will further regulate the disposal procedures of dead livestock and strengthen our supervision of related industries to prevent such illegal activities that may threaten people's health and safety," the official said.

The banner government said it will improve its management system and build an internet platform that shares real-time information about livestock on all the banner's farms.

It isn't the first time China has found dead pigs in a major river.

In 2013, thousands of dead pigs were found in Shanghai's Huangpu River. A year later, authorities pulled more than 100 dead pigs from the Ganjiang River in Southeast China's Jiangxi province.

yangwanli@chinadaily.com.cn