Borough parks will remain closed after the collected geese tested positive and four more dead birds were discovered, officials said.
Sara Winick, Patch Staff
|Updated Tue, Feb 25, 2025 at 11:24 am ET
ALLENTOWN, NJ — Parks in Allentown will remain closed after dead geese collected from the area tested positive for avian flu, Borough Administrator Laurie Roth said.
The NJ Department of Environmental Protection (NJ DEP) collected dead Canadian geese from the millpond of Dr. Farmer’s Park, Pete Sensi Park and the parking lot along the waterway of Heritage Park on Feb. 4, borough officials said.
On Thursday, the borough announced that the collected geese tested positive for Bird Flu, and that all three parks would remain closed until further notice.
Fishing is also prohibited at this time, and borough officials are urging residents not to touch any dead birds or bird feces.
News of dead geese being discovered in the borough’s parks came in early February, when borough officials announced closures for Dr. Farmer’s Park, Pete Sensi Park and Heritage Park.
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Around 25-30 dead geese were found in the millpond area, according to Roth, though all three parks were closed out of precaution since they share the same waterway.
Since the geese were collected, Roth said four more dead birds have been discovered throughout the parks. Due to recent snowfall and the millpond freezing, Roth said there may be more.
While the parks remain closed, Roth said the Allentown Lions Club’s annual Easter Egg Hunt has also been moved from Dr. Farmer’s Park to Heritage Park, since the only part of Heritage Park that’s closed is along the waterway by the Old Mill park entrance. The event will take place on Saturday, April 12.
In addition to the dead geese discovered in Allentown, dead birds have also been reported in Belmar and Hillsborough, according to local officials. In northern Ocean County, a dead hawk is being tested for Bird Flu.
The current strain of bird flu, H5N1, also known as avian influenza, is suspected to have caused localized deaths of multiple wild birds, predominantly snow geese and Canada geese, in parts of New Jersey since the end of December, according to the state DEP, which is responsible for tracking the spread in wild birds.
More than 140 sick or dead snow geese and Canada geese (plus lower numbers of raptors and other avian scavengers) have been reported from more than 30 locations throughout the state, according to DEP officials.
Clusters of five birds or more have also been reported in Atlantic, Cape May, Cumberland, Salem and Warren counties, officials said. Of these wild birds, 11 have tested positive, though the DEP is awaiting confirmation from the federal government.
Though cases of H5N1 have been reported in animals, there are no reported cases of human infection of H5N1 in New Jersey, the DEP said.
The US Center for Disease Control & Prevention has also declared that the H5N1 outbreak is primarily an animal health issue, and poses a low risk to public health, according to NJ DEP Spokesman Larry Hajna.
To ensure that everyone remains safe, Allentown Borough officials are urging residents to avoid any interaction with the geese and to not attempt to remove or dispose of the geese themselves.
If you find any geese, you can report your findings to Borough Hall at 609-259-3151.
DEP Fish & Wildlife is recommending the following safety measures for the general public:
Occurrences of avian influenza can be tracked here. For further guidance or information on H5N1, you can click here.
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