Brussels, 15/10/2007 (Agence Europe) - Denmark is the seventh country in northern Europe to have had an outbreak of bluetongue in sheep. On Saturday 13 October, the European Commission explained that 'an outbreak of bluetongue in sheep' had been detected in a sheep herd near Sakskobing on the island of Lolland. The virus spreads rapidly and has already hit France, Belgium, Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, not to mention the endemic bluetongue in southern Europe (including Greece, Italy and Spain). To tackle the outbreak, an emergency action plan has been introduced, including the demarcation of an amended restricted zone, clinical surveillance methods, identifying the serotype and entomology in the restricted areas and health and vaccination measures (where a vaccination exists). The Commission says more than 25,000 cases of bluetongue in sheep have been registered in northern Europe. (L.C.)