A menace that crashed the poultry industry in 2015 has returned to the Hawkeye State.

The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship and the USDA on Monday announced a positive case of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in Buena Vista County. The virus was found in a commercial 50,000-head turkey flock, which was destroyed.

"[We] are working diligently with producers to trace back, control and eradicate this disease from our state," Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig said in a news release. "Protecting the health of our livestock and Iowa's agriculture-based economy are our top priorities."

HPAI was also detected last week in a backyard flock of 42 chickens and ducks in Pottawattamie County. The animals were destroyed and incinerated in an effort to halt the spread.

Extremely contagious and deadly among birds, the virus wreaked havoc in Iowa in 2015. In all, 32.7 million birds were destroyed. Nationally, that number tallied 50.5 million.

According to a report in the Des Moines Register, avian influenza also was discovered in commercial flocks in Maryland, South Dakota and Missouri, bringing the total to 12 the states with reported outbreaks.

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds on Monday declared a disaster proclamation for HPAI in Buena Vista County extending through April 5. The announcement allows for state resources from Iowa Homeland Security, the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship and other agencies to assist with "tracking and monitoring, rapid detection, containment, disposal and disinfection."

If a statewide outbreak occurs similar to the one seven years ago, it has the potential to once again devastate Iowa's poultry industry. The state leads the nation in egg production with 55 million laying hens and ranks seventh nationally for annual turkey production with 12 million birds.