Corwin was forced to lay off 48 workers but kept 20 to help with the clean up. He said the company was successful in salvaging many of the 10,000 eggs that he hopes could represent the future of Crescent, which has developed a unique genetic strain of duck over generations.

First U.S. detection of virulent H5N9 strain, at a California duck farm, draws scrutiny as evidence of genetic reassortment that could trigger human outbreaks.