Many Americans are concerned about the spread of bird flu among humans, DailyMail.com has found.
New Yorkers told us they feared they could soon be staring down the barrel of a Covid 2.0 situation — after the virus infected someone in Texas.
A 20-year-old skateboarding student nearby even said the situation was “not good” and that he “definitely didn’t want to experience it.”
Others, however, struck a more optimistic tone, including two girls feeding pigeons in the park, who said they would keep coming and always remembered to wash their hands afterwards.
Doctors are being urged to be alert to human cases after a human was diagnosed with the disease in Texas. They only had an eye infection and were expected to recover well.
Two students who fed pigeons in Union Square, Manhattan – Amanda and Tamari – told DailyMail.com they were only mildly concerned about bird flu as pigeons ran over them
Brandon Roberts, visiting New York from California, said the bird flu cases in cattle concerned him
It comes after steakhouses in the city pushed back on claims that beef not cooked ‘well done’ could contain bird flu, saying their steaks were still ‘safe to eat’.
Brandon Roberts, 33, who was in the area on business, said the case of bird flu in Texas concerned him.
“I see the headlines and I’m like… ‘oh no, not again,'” he said.
‘I won’t say as much as (Covid 2.0), but when you see the headlines about these things you think ‘oh damn, not again!’
“That’s about where I am now.”
A 20-year-old student standing in the square added: ‘It’s not a good sign that it’s now showing up in people and animals.
“I definitely don’t want to catch him.”
He also revealed that he had recovered from Covid four times after severe infections with sore throats and coughs. He was not hospitalized.
Another resident, Caroline, in her 40s, said: ‘I’m concerned about what if it spreads to a human – could it be another pandemic?’
“Now that I’ve been through the pandemic, I’m worried.”
A farmer visiting the Union Square farmers market said several flocks in his area had previously been diagnosed with bird flu
Geese, falcons and hawks living in Manhattan’s parks and green spaces have tested positive for the virus, officials say, although the cases could be more widespread (stock image)
But there were also New Yorkers who said they weren’t too worried about the disease — or the possibility of it spreading among people.
Amanda, 23, a senior at Baruch College in Manhattan, spoke to DailyMail.com as she was feeding pigeons – while several clambered over her to grab grain.
“We make sure we clean our hands afterwards and try not to inhale when the birds are fluttering around,” she said.
‘But we keep feeding them, yes. This is a lot of fun and we meet a lot of people who do this too.
“It’s a great way to reconnect with nature in the city.”
When asked if she had seen any sick pigeons, she said some of the birds “looked dirty” but she attributed this to being in town.
DailyMail.com also spoke with a Pennsylvania farmer who visited the Square farmers market that day. He has 1,200 free-range chickens on his farm in Auburn.
He said: ‘There were some farms in our area that had gotten it so we had to check our birds.
“So we tested our birds and we never caught it, so I don’t really know much about it. Fortunately, neither the laying hens nor the birds ever picked up anything.’
It comes after New Yorkers were urged to keep their distance from wildlife after cases of bird flu were reported in New York.
Geese, falcons and hawks living in Manhattan’s parks and green spaces have tested positive for the virus, officials say. Warning cases could be more widespread.
Residents and visitors are warned not to chase or capture birds and to wash their hands after contact with droppings.
Mount Sinai microbiologist Philip Meade warned people to be careful around animals: ‘You walk past a sick goose and get bird flu, that’s not how it works.
“(But) precautions that everyone should take would simply be to limit contact with wildlife.
“For example, you shouldn’t run up to a Canada goose and try to catch it.”