ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) _ Minnesota's governor and U.S. senators have visited the heart of the state's poultry country for a first-hand look at how the top turkey-producing state is fighting bird flu.

Gov. Tim Walz and Sens. Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith visited an emergency operations center Tuesday in Willmar where state and federal agencies are working to contain the outbreak.

They say the state is better positioned now than during the devastating 2015 outbreak, which killed 9 million birds in the state.

The current outbreak has cost Minnesota turkey and chicken producers nearly 2 million birds at 40 farms.

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