Reports say the woman, 47-year-old Luo, was a farmer from Shaoyang City.

According to the Hunan provincial Disease Control Centre (CDC), she was admitted to a local hospital on Friday when her health condition had already become critical and later died on Sunday.

Luo had contact with dead poultry before she fell ill.

No human-to-human transmission has been reported yet.

Experts from the CDC warned people who have had contact with live poultry to stay alert and for others to stay away from poultry and excrement.