Polish swans and Austrian cats infected with deadly form of bird flu

AVIAN flu extended its grip on Europe yesterday, as Poland reported that two dead swans had the virulent H5N1 strain of the virus and Austria confirmed that several cats had been infected.

The World Health Organisation, meanwhile, called bird flu a greater global challenge than any previous infectious disease, costing global agriculture more than $10 billion and affecting the livelihoods of 300 million farmers.

Dr Margaret Chan, who is spearheading WHO efforts against bird flu, told disease experts in Geneva that the organisation's top priority was to keep the deadly strain from mutating into a form easily passed between humans. That could trigger a global pandemic.