WUHAN, China (AP) – A World Health Organization team that investigated the origins of the coronavirus pandemic on Sunday visited the food market in the Chinese city of Wuhan, which was linked to many early infections.
The team members visited Huanan Seafood Market for about an hour in the afternoon, and one of them gave a thumbs up when reporters asked how the trip was going.
The market was the site of an outbreak of the virus in December 2019. Scientists initially suspected that the virus came from wild animals sold on the market. The market has since been largely ruled out, but it can provide insight into how the virus has spread so widely.
“Very important site visits today – a first wholesale market and the Huanan Seafood Market right now,” said Peter Daszak, a zoologist for the North American group EcoHealth Alliance and a member of the WHO team, in a tweet. “Very informative and critical for our joint teams to understand the epidemiology of COVID, as it started to spread in late 2019.”
Earlier in the day, team members were also seen walking through sections of the Baishazhou market – one of Wuhan’s largest wet markets – surrounded by a large entourage of Chinese officials and representatives. The market was Wuhan’s food distribution center during the city’s 76-day blockade last year.
Members, with experience in veterinary medicine, virology, food safety and epidemiology, have so far visited two hospitals at the center of the initial outbreak – Wuhan Jinyintan Hospital and the Integrated Chinese and Western Hospital of Hubei.
On Saturday, they also visited a museum exhibition dedicated to the first steps in the history of COVID-19.
The mission has become politically charged as China seeks to avoid blame for alleged errors in its initial response to the outbreak.
A single visit from scientists is unlikely to confirm the origins of the virus. Determining the animal reservoir of an outbreak is typically an exhaustive effort that takes years of research, including collecting animal samples, genetic analyzes and epidemiological studies.
One possibility is that a wildlife hunter passed the virus on to traders who took it to Wuhan. The Chinese government has promoted theories, with little evidence, that the outbreak could have started with the importation of frozen seafood contaminated with the virus, an idea totally rejected by scientists and international agencies.
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Soo reported from Hong Kong.