(repeats to additional subscribers) By Julian Linden SYDNEY, Aug 25 (Reuters) - Australia's multi-billion dollar racing industry was in turmoil on Saturday after an outbreak of equine influenza in Sydney triggered a nationwide shutdown on all horse movement. Dozens of race meetings across the country were cancelled after the government ordered a three-day ban on any horse travel as part of a desperate attempt to contain the disease. The unprecedented moves followed confirmation that at least 16 horses had tested positive for equine influenza (EI), a respiratory illness that is rarely fatal but tires horses and is highly contagious. Australia's Federal Agriculture Minister Peter McGauran said the shutdown would cost the industry millions of dollars but was the only way to prevent the disease from spreading into the general horse community. "The best case scenario is a loss of tens of millions, the worst case scenario is a figure anything beyond that," McGauran told Australian television. "The first 24 hours is critical in trying to contain the disease. This is going to cause enormous inconvenience but it's in everybody's interest that no horse moves beyond the stable gate." Australia, which boasts some of the toughest quarantine rules in the world, has never had a previous recorded case of horse flu, but officials suspect the disease has come from Japan, which has just been hit by a similar outbreak. Japanese stallions regularly visit Australia during the southern hemisphere's breeding season, which starts next week, while their top racehorses often compete in the lucrative Spring Carnival. The first signs the disease had reached Australia appeared on Thursday when three horses tested positive at a quarantine station in Sydney, which was being used to stable more than 70 of the world's most valuable thoroughbreds, including stallions from Ireland, the United States and Japan. TRAVEL BAN Officials ordered those horses remain in quarantine for at least a month but the travel ban was extended to all horses in Australia when another two horses at the facility tested positive and 11 more at a training centre in Sydney. None of the extra 11 positive tests were from racehorses but they were all stabled in Centennial Park, less than five kilometres from Sydney's Randwick course, which was due to stage a major feature meeting on Saturday. The meeting was immediately cancelled by officials fearing the disease would spread, triggering a nationwide postponement of all thoroughbred and harness racing meetings across the Australian mainland. "This is extremely serious... there could be no more serious situation to be frank," McGauran said. "But we're still optimistic. Nobody is panicking. "The industry has not hesitated for a moment to bring in unprecedented measures of a kind that might be financially devastating but will give the containment strategy the best chance of succeeding." A major outbreak of horse flu would have serious repercussions for the Australian horse racing and breeding industry, which is estimated to be worth billions of dollars annually. The highlight of the Australian racing calendar is the Melbourne Cup, which is run on the first Tuesday in November. The 3,200 metre race attracts some of the best stayers from Britain, Europe and Asia and was won by Japanese entrant Delta Blues last year.
