Special report: When could China have controlled the coronavirus outbreak?

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A Timeline of Events Leading Up to the Coronavirus Outbreak in China

By Penny Zhou

March 8, 2020 Updated: March 8, 2020

Jan. 20 is possibly one of the most important dates on the timeline of China’s coronavirus outbreak.

Before that day, people in Wuhan were carefree and unconcerned about the virus, due to reassuring announcements from authorities.

They weren’t wearing masks. They were visiting infected hospitals that don’t separate fever patients. They were even enjoying massive banquets where over 40,000 people shared meals together.

But soon after, China’s top coronavirus expert, Zhong Nanshan, appeared on state media to confirm that the virus is actually contagious. That’s when the country started to panic. Authorities began taking drastic measures, but it still wouldn’t stop the flood of tragic incidents from happening.

While you’re probably being bombarded with scary new updates every day, NTD would like to help explain the incidents leading up to Jan. 20 and discuss the idea that this public health event was not an accident. The disastrous outbreak and its coverup were almost certain to happen under the country’s communist system.

When could China’s authorities have pulled the alarm, enacted preventative measures, and avoided the loss of life?

Earliest Sign

The earliest sign probably showed up in mid-November.

“It’s actually been very long. We have been working under very bad protective measures for almost two months now,” Dr. Wei, a physician in a Wuhan clinic told NTD on Jan. 22 in a phone interview. Dr. Wei said his clinic has been experiencing a surge of fever patients since last November.

A research paper later published may have affirmed what he said.

Commenting on the paper published by Lancet, Infectious disease expert Daniel Lucey told Science Magazine that if the new data is accurate, the first human infections must have occurred in November 2019—if not earlier.

Whistleblower Issues First Warning

Fast forward to late December when information about a mysterious pneumonia outbreak was already circulating inside China’s hospitals. Doctors warned families and friends to stay away from a place called the Huanan Seafood market and to be careful of a potential SARS-like virus.

That includes Dr. Li Wenliang, who posted the lab test result of a coronavirus patient in a group chat of about 150 medics on Dec. 30, writing: “7 cases of SARS have been confirmed in the South China Fruit and Seafood Market and they were isolated in the emergency department of our hospital. Please tell your families to take preventative measures.”

In later interviews, some doctors also revealed that healthcare workers were starting to become infected around this time, a significant sign that the virus could spread between humans.

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