Eddie Holmes can still remember the exact moment he first learned about COVID-19.
Key points:
Australian virologist Eddie Holmes co-authored a study that has identified a Wuhan wet market as the likely epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic
Professor Holmes visited the market in 2014 and recognized the risk of virus transmission between animals and humans and suggested taking some samples
His research pinpoints a few square meters where the virus is likely to have been transmitted between animals and humans
The University of Sydney virologist said it was New Years Eve, 2019, when he received a news alert that China had notified the World Health Organization of a strange new virus.
“It said four cases of an episode of pneumonia were found in a live animal market in Wuhan, China,” he said. “It immediately rang alarm bells.”
Professor Holmes told ABC News Daily the story jumped out because he had visited that very market, the Huanan seafood wholesale market, in 2014.
“While I was there, I noticed there were these live wildlife for sale, particularly raccoon dogs and… muskrats” he said.
“I took the photographs because I thought to myself: ‘God, that’s, that’s not quite right’.”
A photo taken in 2014 by Professor Eddie Holmes, showing animals caged in the Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market.(Supplied: Eddie Holmes)
Raccoon dogs had been associated with the emergence of a different coronavirus outbreak, SARS-CoV-1, in 2002-04, which became known worldwide as the SARS virus.
Even in 2014, Professor Holmes believed the market could become a site of virus transmission between animals and humans.
“I said to my Chinese colleagues: ‘This is a really interesting situation here. We should do some sampling of the animal market to see what viruses these animals have got and if they’re going to jump,'” he said.
‘Engine room of disease emergence’
The monitoring that Professor Holmes suggested never took place but, in the early days of COVID-19, he was still convinced that a market like the one in Wuhan was the logical origin of the virus.
“They are the kind of engine room of [this sort] of disease emergence … because what you’re doing is you’re putting humans and wildlife in close proximity to each other,” he said.
REHOBOTH BEACH, Del. — Ending his most recent COVID-19 isolation, President Joe Biden on Sunday left the White House for the first time since becoming infected with the coronavirus last month, settling in for a meeting with first lady Jill Biden in their home state of Delaware.
The president tested negative Saturday and Sunday, according to his doctor, clearing the way for him to emerge from an isolation that lasted longer than expected because of a rebound case of the virus.
“I’m feeling great,” Biden said before boarding Marine One outside the White House.
The Bidens were expected to spend the day in Rehoboth Beach, a popular vacation destination.
Biden originally tested positive on July 21, and he began taking the anti-viral medication Paxlovid, which is intended to decrease the likelihood of serious illness from the virus. According to his doctor, Biden’s vital signs remained normal throughout his infection, but his symptoms included a runny nose, cough, sore throat and body aches.
After isolating for several days, Biden tested negative on July 26 and July 27, when he gave a speech in the Rose Garden, telling Americans they can “live without fear” of the virus if they get booster shots, test themselves for the virus if they become sick and seek out treatments.
But Biden caught a rare rebound case of COVID-19 on July 30, forcing him to isolate again. He occasionally gave speeches from a White House balcony, such as when he marked the killing of an al-Qaida leader or a strong jobs report.
He continued to test positive until Saturday, when he received his first negative result. While the president was isolating in the White House residence, the first lady remained in Delaware.
The Bidens are scheduled to visit Kentucky on Monday to view flood damage and meet with families.
