WASHINGTON, April 1 (Xinhuanet) -- US President George W. Bush on Friday issued a directive authorizing the government to impose a quarantine when needed to prevent the spread of bird flu now reported in Southeast Asia.

    The order gives the Health and Human Services Department legal authority to detain or isolate any passenger suspected of having bird flu when arriving in the United States.

    The authority would be used only if the suspected passenger refused to cooperate with a voluntary request, said the department.

    The H5N1 bird flu virus has killed 49 people in Asia since 2003.The fatality rate among those who contracted the virus is reportedly 70 percent.

    The Bush order was described as a standby precaution. It added pandemic influenza to the government list of communicable diseases for which quarantine is authorized. Quarantine and isolation were last used during the outbreak of SARS, severe acute respiratory syndrome, in 2003. Enditem