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How did it start?
The disease seems to have started from a Wuhan seafood market where wild creatures, including marmots, fowls, bunnies, bats, and snakes, are exchanged wrongfully. Coronaviruses are known to hop from creatures to people, so it's idea that the principal individuals tainted with the ailment Some early instances of COVID-19, in any case, seem to have exacted individuals with no connection to the Wuhan advertise by any means. -
Chinese authorities treated dozens of cases of pneumonia of unknown cause.
On Dec. 31, the government in Wuhan, China, confirmed that health authorities were treating dozens of cases. Days later, researchers in China identified a new virus that had infected dozens of people in Asia. At the time, there was no evidence that the virus was readily spread by humans. Health officials in China said they were monitoring it to prevent the outbreak from developing into something more severe. -
China reported its first death
On Jan. 11, Chinese state media reported the first known death from an illness caused by the virus, which had infected dozens of people. The 61-year-old man who died was a regular customer at the market in Wuhan, and he had previously been found to have abdominal tumors and chronic liver disease. The report of his death came just before one of China’s biggest holidays when hundreds of millions of people travel across the country. -
Other countries, including the United States, confirmed cases.
The first confirmed cases outside mainland China occurred in Japan, South Korea, and Thailand, according to the World Health Organization’s first situation report. The first confirmed case in the United States came the next day in Washington State, where a man in his 30s developed symptoms after returning from a trip to Wuhan. -
Wuhan, a city of more than 11 million, was cut off by the Chinese authorities.
The Chinese authorities closed off Wuhan by canceling planes and trains leaving the city and suspending buses, subways and ferries within it. At this point, at least 17 people had died and more than 570 others had been infected, including in Taiwan, Japan, Thailand, South Korea, and the United States. -
The first coronavirus death was reported outside China.
A 44-year-old man in the Philippines died after being infected, officials said, the first death reported outside China. By this point, more than 360 people had died. -
The disease the virus causes got a new name.
The World Health Organization on Feb. 11 proposed an official name for the disease the virus coronavirus causes: COVID-19, an acronym that stands for coronavirus disease 2019. The name makes no reference to any of the people, places, or animals associated with the coronavirus, given the goal to avoid stigma.
By the next day, the death toll in China had reached 1,113 and the total number of confirmed cases rose to 44,653. There were 393 cases outside of China, in 24 countries. -
Hundreds leave the quarantined cruise ship.
After a two-week quarantine, 443 passengers began leaving the Diamond Princess cruise ship. It was the first day of a three-day operation to offload people who tested negative for the virus and did not have symptoms. Passengers who shared cabins with infected patients remained on the ship. A total of 621 people aboard the ship were infected. -
Italy sees major surge in coronavirus cases and officials lock down towns.
Europe faced its first major outbreak as the number of reported cases in Italy grew from fewer than five to more than 150. In the Lombardy region, officials locked down 10 towns after a cluster of cases suddenly emerged in Codogno, southeast of Milan. As a result, schools closed and sporting and cultural events were canceled. -
Latin America reports its first coronavirus case.
Brazilian health officials said that a 61-year-old São Paulo man, who had returned recently from a business trip to Italy, tested positive for the coronavirus. It was the first known case in Latin America. Officials also began tracking down other passengers on the flight the man took to Brazil and others who had contact with him in recent days. -
U.S. officials approve widespread coronavirus testing.
The C.D.C. lifted all federal restrictions on testing for the coronavirus on March 3, according to Vice President Mike Pence. The news came after the C.D.C.’s first attempt to produce a diagnostic test kit fell flat. By this point, the coronavirus had infected more than 90,000 around the globe and killed about 3,000, according to the W.H.O. -
President Trump blocks most visitors from continental Europe.
In a prime-time address from the Oval Office, Mr. Trump said he would halt travelers from European countries other than Britain for 30 days, as the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus a pandemic and stock markets plunged further.
