South Korea has suspended poultry imports from Thailand amid fears of a bird flu epidemic.

The government announced Saturday that it has decided to return all Thai poultry currently in South Korea to its country of origin.

The action was taken as fear is growing over the spread of bird flu that broke out in Thailand on January 14th. One person has reportedly died of the avian illness in that nation.

The World Health Organization says this flu strain poses a threat because it can jump species and might prove to spread as rapidly between humans as it does among poultry.

Health experts in Thailand and Vietnam have confirmed cases of human infection by the flu amid massive outbreaks of the disease at poultry farms. Researchers say the human victims likely caught the disease from infected chickens or dried chicken waste.