The British government Wednesday sounded the all- clear regarding two latest suspected foot-and-mouth cases in southern England, saying that tests were negative. Chief veterinary officer Dr. Debby Reynolds said initial tests on a farm in the Romney Marsh area of Kent, carried out after a farmer was alarmed that his cattle were displaying symptoms, proved negative, according to DPA. Animals at Chessington World of Adventures & Zoo in Surrey, south- west of London, also tested negative for the highly infectious disease, she said. The latest suspected cases followed an outbreak last weekend when aruond 580 animals were culled in a preventive measure to keep the disease from spreading. Health experts believe the disease outbreak originated at a research laboratory in Pirbright in Surrey, but it remained unclear how it happened.
