 A COUPLE struck down by bird flu said today they thought they were going to die. Lauren Gedman and her partner Mark Kinder, from Sutton Heath, St Helens, caught the same disease which hit north Wales earlier this month. Ms Gedman was taken to Whiston hospital after complaining of headaches, nausea, and fever. Mr Kinder fell ill shortly afterwards and spent four days in hospital. The couple said they had still not fully recovered and have launched legal action against the Cheshire market at the centre of the outbreak. Today they described how a trip to buy three chickens and 10 khaki ducklings for their allotment ended in disaster. Ms Gedman said: “I thought I was going to die. I’m still not fully recovered now and it’s been a total nightmare. “We are being regularly monitored and neither of us are back to normal. “It’s been a terrible few weeks.” The couple visited Frank R Marshall & Co at Chelford market in Macclesfield on May 7. A week later Ms Gedman fell violently ill and was initially told by doctors that she had a water-based infection. She was eventually taken to hospital, unable to walk or drive, where medics confirmed she had contracted a strain of bird flu. Mr Kinder fell ill later, and recorded a temperature of 39 degrees. He is still complaining of sneezing after completing his medication. Their conditions are being monitored by the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs which is keeping in daily contact with the couple. The disease they have contracted is not contagious to humans, but medication has been given to close family and friends as a precaution. A spokesman for St Helens & Knowsley Hospitals NHS trust said: “Two members of the public who had come into direct contact with infected poultry associated with the outbreak in north Wales, presented to Whiston hospital with flu-like symptoms. “This strain of flu is not the H5N1 strain that has been found in poultry in south-east Asia. “It is generally contracted through direct contact with infected poultry and does not spread easily from person-to-person. “The Health Protection Agency is able to reassure the public that there is no flu risk in the wider community.” Ms Gedman and Mr Kinder are being represented by Liverpool solicitor Rex Makin in their bid for compensation from the market. Chelford Market is an agricultural auction owned by Marshall’s Auction House. Gwyn Williams, market superintendent, declined to comment. luketraynor@liverpoolecho.co.uk
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