Two chicken farms near an industrial park in east China's Jiangsu Province recently reported that more than 20,000 domestic fowls had abruptly died. The owner of one of the farms, surnamed Zhang, suspected bird flu was the killer, a report on people.com.cn said Wednesday.

A huge number of chickens have been found dead on two chicken farms near an industrial park in Binhai County, in east China's Jiangsu Province as of Tuesday, July 7, 2009. [Photobase.cn]

Zhang said he noticed a few dead chickens on June 27. But later, about 1,000 of their domestic fowls were dying daily. By July 7, the number of died chickens had exceeded 20,000.

The animal quarantine department of Binhai County conducted investigations after receiving reports from farm owners. However, the result shows that the chickens were not killed by bird flu, but by poisoning.

According to the investigations, the chickens shared the same symptoms of having blackened harslet and muscle atrophy.

These results caused the farm owners to believe that an electric appliances factory was polluting a river, the source of the chickens' water intake.

The report also noted the electric appliances factory, within two kilometres of the chicken farms' reach, releases polluting water to the river that also irrigates croplands.

However, relevant government departments haven't probed into the case yet, despite repeated calls from farm owners who complain the electric appliances factory should compensate them for their losses.