A second case of foot-and-mouth disease has been confirmed in Britain, just one day after the country's first outbreak in three months.
The new cases involve two farms in Northumberland which are less than five miles apart. Officials said the farmers were friends and it was possible the disease had spread through movement between the two farms.
Hopes had been growing that the disease had been wiped out in Northumberland after no new cases were found for almost three months.
Yesterday, however, a cull began at a farm near Hexham when the disease was spotted. The British Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) workers have now confirmed the outbreak at the farm in nearby Catton.
Both farms had cows and sheep on the premises and an investigation has been launched into how many other farms could be affected.
PA
