BEIJING, Aug. 19 (Xinhua) -- An outbreak of African swine fever has been discovered at a farm in the city of Lianyungang, east China's Jiangsu Province, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs said Sunday.

The farm in Haizhou District has reported 615 infected pigs and 88 have died after deaths began to be registered on Aug. 15, the ministry said in an online statement.

The agricultural ministry has sent teams to Jiangsu, where local authorities have initiated an emergency response mechanism to block, cull, and disinfect the affected pigs.

The situation is under control, said the ministry.

Earlier this month, an outbreak of African swine fever was discovered in a farm in Shenyang, capital of northeast China's Liaoning Province. It was China's first outbreak of the disease.

African swine fever is a highly contagious, viral disease that infects pigs. It does not affect humans or other animal species.