Ground Report: WHO team visits COVID-19 epicentre in Wuhan, remain tight lipped on their investigation

A World Health Organization-led team investigating the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic on Monday (February 1) visited the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention in China's central region of Hubei, where the outbreak emerged in late 2019.

(Image Source: Reuters)

The group of independent experts spent about four-and-a-half hours on its longest site visit since completing two weeks of quarantine on Thursday, and did not speak to waiting journalists.

(Image Source: Reuters)

The WHO, which has sought to manage expectations for the mission, has said its members would be limited to visits organised by their Chinese hosts and have no contact with community members, because of health curbs.

(Image Source: Reuters)

Peter Ben Embarek, a member of the World Health Organisation (WHO) team tasked with investigating the origins of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), waves from a balcony, at a hotel in Wuhan, Hubei province, China.

(Image Source: Reuters)

The group has so far also visited hospitals where early cases were detected, markets, and an exhibition on the battle with the outbreak in the provincial capital of Wuhan.

(Image Source: Reuters)

No full itinerary for the group's fieldwork has been announced, and journalists covering the tightly controlled visit have been kept at a distance from team members.

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Beijing has sought to cast doubt on the notion that the coronavirus originated in China, pointing to imported frozen food as a conduit.

(Image Source: Reuters)

On Sunday, the experts visited the Huanan seafood market linked to initial infections, and the Baishazhou wholesale food market, where a loudspeaker repeatedly announced that the sale of imported cold chain products was banned at the market.

(Image Source: Reuters)