Many Americans are worried about bird flu spreading to people, DailyMail.com has learned.
New Yorkers told us they were worried 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 student who skateboarded in the area even said that the situation was “not good” and that he “definitely didn’t want to get infected.”
Others, however, took a more optimistic tone, including two girls feeding the pigeons in the park who said they would keep coming back and always remembered to wash their hands afterwards.
Doctors are being urged to be alert for human cases after a human was diagnosed with the disease in Texas. They only suffered eye inflammation and are believed to be recovering well.
Two students feeding pigeons in Union Square, Manhattan, Amanda and Tamari, told DailyMail.com they were only mildly worried about bird flu as the pigeons scampered over them.
Brandon Roberts, who was visiting New York from California, said cases of bird flu in livestock had worried him.
It comes after the city’s steakhouses hit back at claims that undercooked beef could contain bird flu, saying their steaks were still “safe to eat”.
Brandon Roberts, 33, who was in the area on business, said the bird flu case in Texas had him worried.
“I look at the headlines and think… ‘Oh no, not again,'” he said.
“I won’t say as much as [Covid 2.0]but when you start seeing headlines about these things you think, “Oh shit, not again!
“That’s where I am now.”
A 20-year-old student in the square added: “It’s not a good sign that it’s appearing now in people and animals.”
“I definitely don’t want to get infected.”
He also revealed that he had recovered from Covid four times after suffering severe infections with a sore throat and cough. He was not hospitalized.
Another resident, Caroline, in her 40s, said: “I’m worried about what happens if it’s transferred to a human. Could it be another pandemic?”
“After having gone through the pandemic, I have concerns.”
A farmer attending the Union Square Farmers Market said bird flu had previously been detected in several flocks near him.
Geese, falcons and falcons that live in Manhattan parks and green spaces have tested positive for the virus, officials say, although cases could be more widespread (file image)
But there were also New Yorkers who said they were not overly concerned about the disease or the possibility of it being transmitted to people.
Amanda, 23, a senior at Baruch College in Manhattan, spoke to DailyMail.com as she fed pigeons, with several climbing on her to grab grain.
“We make sure to wash our hands afterwards and try not to breathe when the birds are flying around,” he said.
‘But we will continue to feed them, yes. This is really fun and we know a lot of people who do it too.
“It’s a great way to reconnect with nature in the city.”
When asked if he had seen sick pigeons, he said several of them “looked disgusting,” but he attributed that to them being in the city.
DailyMail.com also spoke to a Pennsylvania farmer who was attending the Square Farmers Market that day. He has 1,200 free-range chickens on his Auburn farm.
He said: ‘There were a few farms in our area that had contracted it so we had to check our birds.
‘So, we tried our birds and never caught them, so I don’t really know much about it. Fortunately, neither the layers nor the birds ever picked anything up.’
It comes after New Yorkers were urged to stay away from wildlife after cases of bird flu were reported in New York City.
Geese, hawks and falcons that live in Manhattan parks and green spaces have tested positive for the virus, officials say, warning that cases could be more widespread.
Residents and visitors are warned not to chase or attempt to catch birds and to wash their hands after any contact with droppings.
Warning people to be careful around the animals, Mount Sinai microbiologist Philip Meade said: “If you walk past a sick goose and get bird flu, it won’t work that way.”
‘[But] The precautions everyone should take would be to simply limit contact with wildlife.
“You shouldn’t run up to a Canada goose and try to catch it, [for example].’