BEIJING: Health authorities in China say a 26-year-old woman has died of a strain of bird flu, and another woman is reportedly in serious condition.

The two contracted H5N6, which is a strain of bird flu that has so far only been seen in people in China.

A press officer at Shenzhen's Center for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed Tuesday the local woman died on December 30.

The official Xinhua News Agency says a 40-year-old woman from Guangdong province is being treated in a hospital.

Six human cases of H5N6 have been reported since May 2014. The virus has been detected in poultry in China, Laos and Vietnam.