By Gordon Berry

EXACTLY ONE year ago Fife’s East Neuk found itself in the international spotlight as the UK’s first wild bird case of potentially deadly avian flu was confirmed in a swan found at Cellardyke harbour.

The arrival of the bird in the harbour, and whatever route brought it there, remain a mystery, but confirmation it carried the highly pathogenic H5N1 strain of avian flu signalled the start of a media frenzy and several weeks of restrictions on the movement of poultry and eggs in the area.

The incident led to the UK becoming the the 13th EU country to be hit by a virus that had already caused the deaths of over 100 people in the Far East and Turkey.

Residents were shocked by the development, and at the same time utterly bemused by the small fleet of trucks bristling with satellite and electronic equipment, and journalists who jostled for space in picturesque locations and competed for the quotes of the few local people willing to make any sort of comment.

On April 6, 2006, health officials confirmed that the bird had tested positive for H5N1, which can lead to severe illness, including viral pneumonia, multiple organ failure and death.

A 3km “protection zone” was immediately thrown up round the area where the swan was found, along with a “surveillance zone” of 10km as scientists feared it might have spread to other birds. In the month that followed, members of the public made more than 8000 calls reporting dead birds, with more than 1100 being tested, although all of them proved negative.

Of the events of last year, the secretary of the local community council, Martin Dibley, said, “It was quite an amazing experience to see all that and it all came rushing back earlier this year when we saw the problems Bernard Matthews was having.

“But things here have settled down and we’ve returned to normal. Some people and the odd tourist still come along to see where the swan was found, and any time bird flu is on the news we get a mention.

“To be honest, it has all been quite positive and I think it showed the village and the area in a positive light. Everyone was saying how nice the area was and how friendly the people are and it has, in a bizarre way, increased tourism a little bit.”

Mr Dibley also talked of the effect on property prices, with homes in the area still being snapped up.

Bird flu was discovered at the Bernard Matthews plant in Norfolk in February. More than 150,000 turkeys were culled as a result.