The French Government is also reinforcing measures introduced in August banning the feeding of poultry outdoors and the use of surface-level water as drinking water. Hunters have also been told not to use live birds as bait, due to fears that they may come into contact with migratory birds.
The H5N1 bird flu first appeared in Asia in 2003 and has killed over 60 people, of the 120 who contracted the virus. It has now arrived in Europe, apparently brought over by migratory birds and although no cases of the bird flu have been found in France, Romania, Turkey, Russia, Croatia and Sweden have all found the virus in dead birds. Even in Britain a South American parrot died whilst in quarantine.
The French Government is ordering 200 million protective masks and enough vaccine for the entire population of France and special checks are being carried out at French airports. All the "Reserves of anti-viral medicines, vaccines and protection measures for the population will be increased to the levels required to ensure the health of all French citizens in the event of any pandemic", said a government statement.
