TAIPEI (Reuters) - Villagers in southern Taiwan are strapping bras to their faces to guard against the deadly SARS virus due to a shortage of surgical masks.

'I went to every pharmacy in the village and it's impossible to find a proper mask,' a middle-aged man told cable television on Thursday, his face partially covered by a dark red cup.

'Somebody came up with this idea so I decided to give it a try,' he said at a village near the southern city of Tainan.

A small bra factory is producing the make-shift masks, with workers cutting each of its colorful bras into two and sewing on extra straps to help the desperate villagers.