COVID-19 How it all started
It was New Years, 2019 when health officials in China admitted they had a problem, A New type of virus emerged from Central China. A rapidly increasing number of people were developing symptoms of a dry cough and fever before getting pneumonia, and for some people, it turned fatal.
Doctors have named the disease COVID-19 or "Coronavirus disease, 2019" it indicated that a type of virus is causing the illness. Upon tracing the origin of the virus, they found the likely source. It is located in Huanan Market Wuhan, China. Out of the 41 patients, 27 of those patients had been there. It wasn't conclusive evidence, but Chinese officials quickly shut down the market.
The Story!
hey had seen something like these before with the SARS outbreak that happened in 2003. It originated in mainland China that spread across the country; The Disease had been festering for months in Southern China until an outbreak occurred. In 2002, a coronavirus had emerged at a very similar market in Southern China. It eventually reached 29 countries and killed nearly 800 people. Eighteen years later, this new coronavirus in at least 71 countries has already killed over 3100 people. So, what do these markets have to do with the coronavirus outbreak? Furthermore, why is it happening in China?
A lot of the virus that makes us sick originated in animals. Some of the viruses that cause the flu came from birds and pigs, and that caused influenza. HIV/Aids comes from Chimpanzees; The deadly ebola virus likely originated in bats. In the case of COVID-19, there is some evidence it went from a bat to a pangolin before infecting a human. While viruses are very good at jumping between species, it is rare for a deadly one to make this journey to humans. That is because it would need all these hosts to encounter each other at some point. That is where the Wuhan market takes place, It is a wet market that sells fresh meat, fish, produce, and other perishable goods. These wet markets are a kind of place where animals are slaughtered and sold for consumption. Peter Li, a professor, and expert on China's animal trade, says, "It's not a surprise for many scientists, the cages are stacked one over another...Animals at the bottom are often soaked with all kinds of liquid. Animal excrement, pus and blood. Whatever the liquid they are receiving from the animals above." By Peter Li's statement, that is precisely how a virus can jump from one animal to another. If that animal comes in contact with or is consumed by a human, the virus could potentially infect them. Furthermore, if the virus then spreads to other humans, it causes an outbreak. Wet Markets are scattered all over the world, but the ones in china are mainly well known because they offer a wide variety of animals, including wildlife.
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By: Ricksel Penullar