The woman died in China from bird flu H3N8, a virus that has been circulating since 2002 but has yet to cause death, announced World Health Organization.

The H3N8 virus first appeared in North America, and until now, scientists thought it could be transmitted to horses, dogs, and elephant seals. It was not detected in humans until last spring, when two non-fatal cases were reported in China in April and May.

A 56-year-old woman from Guangdong province in southeast China has died. He fell ill on 22 February and was hospitalized with severe pneumonia on 3 March. According to WHO, he died on the 16th of the month.

“The patient had several comorbidities. Before she became ill, she was in contact with live poultry as well as wild birds around her home,” the agency said in a statement. He added that none of her close contacts had been infected and they had no symptoms of the disease “at the time of writing this report.”