The death total caused by bird flu in Indonesia rose to 87 after a woman on the island of Sumatra died from the lethal H5N1 strain of the virus, officials said.

She is thought to have contracted the virus when she bought chickens from a market, the BBC reported, quoting health ministry officials.

The deadly strain of avian influenza emerged in southeastern Asia in 2003, taking the lives of 180 people, with Indonesia hit the worst.

It has spread throughout the world, causing millions of poultry to be culled as a precautionary measure.

Several southeastern European countries have undergone bird flu scares since 2005, most notably Romania, which has spent millions in hard currency on flu vaccines and to destroy infected birds to prevent its spread.

The virus can now be transmitted only from poultry to people, but scientists fear it could mutate into a form that can be transmitted among humans, which could trigger a flu pandemic that would put millions of lives at risk.

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