Bradford businessman John Holdsworth is not only thousands of miles from home he is also sitting in the centre of a world health crisis.

Chief engineer Mr Holdsworth is employed by a Spanish company making bathroom products like toilets and cisterns, and lives and works in the massive Chinese province of Guangdong.

Mr Holdsworth has lived in China for eight years and married Chinese girl Zha Ya, who works for Swedish electrical engineering company ABB.

He said he was keeping away from public places where the deadly SARS virus (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) could spread but had not taken to wearing a face mask to protect himself.

"Guangdong is not a nice place to be at the moment, but in general, apart from the SARS crisis, the area is the most wealthy province in China.''

It is feared the virus, which shows itself in the form of high fever, dry cough, shortness of breath or breathing difficulties, may have started by jumping from animals to humans in the southern province of Guangdong.

The World Health Organisation has advised against travelling to the province unless it is vital and sent its own team to the province to investigate the outbreak there.

The 48-year-old first arrived in China in 1995 when he worked for a British company involved in a turn-key project for a Hong Kong firm, before he was head-hunted not once but twice to find himself working for Roca, the bathroom supplies operation.

He was once employed by Spring Ram at the Euroway Industrial Estate off the M606 in Bradford.

Having adapted to the cultural and language difficulties in China, Mr Holdsworth, who was born in Denholme, now finds his greatest challenge to be getting his team to lead from the front something he believes to be a throwback to the Cultural Revolution under Chairman Mao.

"The first six to nine months here weren't too pleasant, because of the culture difference and language, but in the eight years I have adapted to the lifestyle,'' he said.

"The language was difficult but now it is mainly the work ethic which is the difficult thing.

"Nobody likes to take the lead and make a decision. Their education is centred on them working as a team, I think it goes back to the Cultural Revolution.''

Around 50 per cent of the products from the factory in Foshan head back to Spain, while the other half stay in the Chinese market.

And his job is to ensure all the equipment sourced from outside the last great Communist monolith works properly.

"It's to make sure all the equipment starts and stops when it should,'' he laughed.

But the SARS virus which has already claimed hundreds of lives and is believed to have infected thousands of victims is something he is watching very closely.

"There have been some cover-ups over the exact figures, but the Chinese Government is now doing its best to co-operate with the World Health Organisation to try to combat the problem.''

But in the short-term the next two to five years anyway Mr Holdsworth plans to stay overseas, whether that be in China or possibly a move to Russia or Mexico.

But he still misses some things about home.

"The things I miss the most are fish and chips and the English summers,'' he said as the temperature in Guangdong tipped 32 degrees centigrade and the humidity touched 80 per cent.

And he remembers his days fund-raising for Sue Ryder Homes his favourite charity by taking part in the Oxenhope straw race.

"I hope people remember that and if I could raise a few more pounds for the Sue Ryder charity it would be great.''