The Sabah state in eastern Malaysia that borders Indonesia is free from bird flu up to now and the state government is taking proactive measures to prevent any outbreak, local media reported on Wednesday.

"We don't want the people to be anxious or fearful of their safety as vigilance at entry points into the state has been heightened," State Secretary K. Y. Mustapha was quoted as saying.

The state government, with the cooperation of the Health Ministry of the federal government, will constantly monitor the situation and make quick response to prevent the disease from spreading to Sabah, Mustapha told reporters in the state capital city of Kota Kinabalu.

The Indonesian government last week confirmed that four people had died of avian flu since this July, when Indonesia became the fourth country in Asia to have recorded human cases of the disease.

Source: Xinhua