Authorities in Kampong Speu province have ordered a chicken farmer to clean up his coop, the source of a local fly infestation that has caused uproar in the community.

Hang Sopheap, Samrong Tong district governor, said he visited the coop in Tumlorb village in response to complaints, making several health and safety recommendations with the help of some local experts.

“If the farm owner does not follow the advice, the experts will close down the farm and will not allow it to run again,” he said.

At the village’s Champa Tep pagoda, the plague of tiny insects has forced monks to eat their meals under mosquito nets to avoid being swarmed.

According to Abbot Ong Samut, the authorities had already come to spray insect repellent in the pagoda and the town, but not before the flies caused minor outbreaks of disease.

“Too many flies in the village have caused villagers to contract stomachaches and diarrhoea,” he said.

The man at the centre of the storm, chicken farmer Kem Lak, conceded that some issues at his coop had occurred, although he said the flies were coming from other farms as well.

“I promise to take care of the standards of the farm and pay more attention. I will not let this problem happen again,” he said.