Late 2019. A mysterious respiratory disease with symptoms similar to SARS begins spreading in and around Wuhan, the capital of the Hubei province in China.
The highly contagions virus is soon identified as a novel strain of the corona virus. This new strain (SARS-CoV-2) causes coronavirus disease 2019 or COVID-19.
Pandemic day zero
Deeply concerned both by the alarming levels of spread and severity, and by the alarming levels of inaction, The World Health Organization made the assessment that COVID-19 can be characterized as a pandemic.
The World Health Organization
Foreign visitors scramble to escape Wuhan before a government lock-down. The international travelers quickly spread the disease around the world.
11 March 2020: it is a GLOBAL pandemic.