3National Centre for Disease Investigation

We describe the spatial, temporal, and spatio-temporal features of the 2001 British foot-and-mouth disease epidemic in the county of Cumbria using hazard functions, extraction mapping and the space-time K-function. Foot-and-mouth disease was first diagnosed in Cumbria in early March 2001 and eradication of the disease in this area of Great Britain was not achieved until September 2001. Delays to eradication were consistent with a large number of cattle holdings infected early in the epidemic creating a high environmental viral load and a relatively large amount of medium to long distance spread of the virus associated with seasonal farming activities such as shearing and contract hay and silage making, compounded to some extent by the movement of people and vehicles between disaggregated farm land parcels. Analysis of the spatio-temporal interaction of disease risk in Cumbria showed that premises remained infectious for a longer period of time throughout May, June and Jul