'Zhong also rejected the theory pushed by Trump and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo that the virus originated in a Wuhan laboratory.
He said he had repeatedly asked Shi Zhengli, the lead virologist from the Wuhan Institute of Virology at the center of the Trump administration's accusations, about claims that the virus was created in her lab and accidentally leaked.
"She said that's totally ridiculous, she had never been doing anything like that," said Zhong, who called Shi a "good friend."
"She said based on their equipment and facilities and manpower... they were unable to do anything, any kind of artificial virus at this time."
Zhong said that in early February, China's disease control authorities spent two weeks investigating Shi's lab for wrongdoing. They didn't find anything, he added.'(CNN) - China still faces the "big challenge" of a potential second wave of Covid-19 infections, the country's top respiratory authority has warned, with the lack of immunity among the community a serious concern as the race to develop a vaccine continues.
Dr. Zhong Nanshan, the Chinese government's senior medical adviser and the public face of the country's fight against Covid-19, also confirmed in an exclusive interview with CNN on Saturday that local authorities in Wuhan, the city where the novel coronavirus was first reported in December, had suppressed key details about the magnitude of the initial outbreak.
..
But Zhong said Chinese authorities should not be complacent, with the danger of a second wave of infections looming large. Fresh clusters of coronavirus cases have emerged across China in recent weeks, in Wuhan as well as the northeastern provinces of Heilongjiang and Jilin.
"The majority of ... Chinese at the moment are still susceptible of the Covid-19 infection, because (of) a lack of immunity," Zhong said. "We are facing (a) big challenge, it's not better than the foreign countries I think at the moment."
..
On January 20, it was Zhong who confirmed on state broadcaster CCTV that the coronavirus can be transmitted between people, after Wuhan health authorities had maintained for weeks that there was no clear evidence for human-to-human transmission, and that the outbreak was "preventable and controllable."
Heading a team of experts dispatched by the NHC to investigate the initial outbreak, Zhong visited Wuhan on January 18. He said that upon his arrival, he received many calls from doctors and former students, warning him that the situation was much worse than the official reports had claimed.
"The local authorities, they didn't like to tell the truth at that time," Zhong said.
"At the very beginning they kept silent, and then I said probably we have (a larger) number of people being infected."
Zhong said he became suspicious when the number of officially reported cases in Wuhan remained at 41 for more than 10 days -- despite infections emerging overseas.
"I didn't believe that result, so I (kept) asking and then, you have to give me the real number," he said. "I suppose they are very reluctant to answer my question."
In Beijing two days later, on January 20, he was told the total number of cases in Wuhan was now 198, with three people killed and 13 medical workers infected.
In a meeting with central government officials, including Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, that same day, he proposed to lock Wuhan down to contain the virus' spread.
..
Zhong said he was surprised by the numbers of infections and deaths in the US, adding that he felt some Western governments didn't take the coronavirus threat seriously early in the outbreak.
"I think in some of the countries in Europe, or perhaps in the US, (the governments) suppose this kind of disease... is more or less like influenza, so that's wrong," he said.
Zhong also rejected the theory pushed by Trump and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo that the virus originated in a Wuhan laboratory.
He said he had repeatedly asked Shi Zhengli, the lead virologist from the Wuhan Institute of Virology at the center of the Trump administration's accusations, about claims that the virus was created in her lab and accidentally leaked.
"She said that's totally ridiculous, she had never been doing anything like that," said Zhong, who called Shi a "good friend."
"She said based on their equipment and facilities and manpower... they were unable to do anything, any kind of artificial virus at this time."
Zhong said that in early February, China's disease control authorities spent two weeks investigating Shi's lab for wrongdoing. They didn't find anything, he added.'
- CNN,
Exclusive: Lack of immunity means China is vulnerable to another wave of coronavirus, top adviser warns, May 17, 2020
Context(Harvard Magazine) - COVID-19 May Be Much More Contagious Than We Thought(BBC) - South Korea fears second wave after spike in new cases(SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19))(Why Does the WHO Exclude Taiwan?) - 'Taiwan’s experience has been a rare positive example of how governments can contain the spread of the new coronavirus disease..'(The Guardian) - The missing six weeks: how Trump failed the biggest test of his life