Thousands of people were infected while China waited to issue public coronavirus warning: report

Thousands of people contracted coronavirus while China waited to issue a public warning in January, The Associated Press reported Wednesday.

Beijing reportedly waited six days to act after privately deciding the disease may have evolved into a pandemic. Chinese President Xi Jinping cautioned the Chinese public on Jan. 20, after the government secretly acknowledged the spread on Jan. 14, according to the AP.

During that time, more than 3,000 people had been infected, according to internal documents obtained by the news service and expert estimates from infection data.

During those six days, Wuhan, the epicenter of the outbreak, hosted a mass banquet for tens of thousands of people and millions began traveling through for the Lunar New Year, the AP noted. 

The news service added that the six-day period was not the first mistake of the Chinese government during this pandemic, nor the longest period during which a country’s government failed to act. But the delay took place at the beginning of the pandemic, which was a vital time to try to curb the virus’s spread, it added. 

From Jan. 5 and Jan. 17, the Chinese Centers of Disease Control and Prevention also did not record any cases, internal bulletins reviewed by the AP show. In that two-week period, patients were still being treated in hospitals in Wuhan and across the country.

China warned its public days after the Jan. 13 recording of a case in Thailand, which offered hints of the upcoming pandemic. But China has denied a “cover-up” or “lack of transparency,” with foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Ligian calling the allegations “groundless” last week.

Experts acknowledge the Chinese government may have avoided a public announcement to prevent hysteria and may have acted in secret.

However, eight doctors were punished for “rumor-mongering” on the second day of the year on national television, which could have prevented medical professionals from speaking up.

The pandemic has infected a confirmed 1.99 million people, causing at least 127,590 deaths worldwide, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.