FMD slaughterman 'terrified' after carcasses explode
The slaughterman suspected of being the first human victim of the foot-and-mouth outbreak has spoken of his fears of developing the disease.
Paul Stamper, 33, of Dearham, Cumbria, is one of three suspected victims waiting for test results.
If he is confirmed as suffering from the disease, it is thought he caught it as a cow on a pile of decomposing carcasses exploded, covering him in fluid.
At the time of the gas explosion he had been transporting dead cattle on to a pyre at a farm in Wigton, Cumbria, earlier this month.
He said: "It doesn't seem real and I'm terrified of what it may mean."
The father-of-two added: "It tasted like it smelled. I spat it out as quickly as I could but I didn't think it was dangerous."
Two weeks later Mr Stamper came down with flu-like symptoms, and blisters developed inside his mouth.
Test results are expected on Monday.
