Two dead swans found in northern Poland had the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu, the Polish veterinary institute was quoted as saying by the PAP news agency yesterday.

?It was the H5N1 strain. It?s certain,? the institute?s Jan Zmudzinski said. ?The test specifically for the H5N1 strain was positive.? The findings confirm the first case of the deadly virus in Poland after two swans were found on Sunday infected with the H5 bird flu virus on the bank of Vistula river in the northern city of Torun.

Preliminary tests for bird flu are routinely conducted in Poland?s veterinary research institute in the city of Pulawy. If the presence of a bird flu virus is confirmed, special tests for the deadly H5H1 strain are carried out in Britain.

The government confirmed the samples will now be sent to the Community Reference Laboratory for avian influenza in Weybridge in the United Kingdom for further tests to confirm they had the more deadly H5N1 virus. The Polish authorities have informed the European Commission that they are applying precautionary measures to prevent the virus from spreading.

They have established a high risk area of 3 km around the outbreak and a surveillance zone of 10 km. Restrictions are also placed on the 6 poultry farms and 4 processing plants in the region. The pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza virus has spread from Asia to Europe and Africa, infecting almost 200 people since late 2003 and killing at least 93 of them. The Polish authorities have informed the European Commission that they are applying precautionary measures to prevent the virus from spreading.

They have established a high risk area of 3 km around the outbreak and a surveillance zone of 10 km. Restrictions are also placed on the 6 poultry farms and 4 processing plants in the region. The pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza virus has spread from Asia to Europe and Africa, infecting almost 200 people since late 2003 and killing at least 93 of them.