(VOVWORLD) - The coronavirus was already present in two large cities in northern Italy in December last year, over two months before the first case was detected, a national health institute study of waste water has found.
Researchers discovered genetic traces of the virus in samples of waste water collected in Milan and Turin at the end of last year, and Bologna in January, the ISS institute said in a statement. Italy's first known native case was discovered mid-February.
Italy was the first European country hit by the virus and the first in the world to impose a nationwide lockdown. It has now recorded over 34,500 deaths.