'BOGGLES MY MIND'
White House coronavirus expert Dr Anthony Fauci calls for SHUT DOWN of Chinese 'wet markets' where outbreak began
Hana Carter
Apr 3 2020, 18:01 ET
Updated: Apr 3 2020, 18:09 ET
AMERICA'S leading doctor in the coronavirus response has called for wet markets to be shut down.
White House expert Dr. Anthony Fauci, says his "mind is boggled" by the markets, as other experts brand them a "ticking time bomb".
Another coronavirus named SARS was also linked to a similar market in southern China and led to the deaths of hundreds in 2002 and 2003Credit: Photo by Anthony Kwan/Getty Images
Dr Fauci has said he would like to see the rest of the world put pressure on the countries that still run wet markets, in the hope that they will be forced to shutCredit: AP Photo/Alex Brandon
Speaking on Fox and Friends Friday, Dr Fauci said: "I think we should shut those things down right away.
"It boggles my mind how when we have so many diseases that emanate out of that unusual human-animal interface, that we don't just shut it down.
"I don't know what else has to happen to get us to appreciate that. I think there are certain countries in which this is very commonplace.
"I would like to see the rest of the world really lean with a lot of pressure on those countries that have that, because what we're going through right now is a direct result of that."
Although the doctor didn't name any country in particular, it has been widely speculated that the virus spread from a wet market in the Chinese city of Wuhan late last year.
TICKING TIME BOMB
The coronavirus itself presents itself in bats, leading experts to believe the coronavirus started in the market in Wuhan selling undercooked bat.
Experts have warned these horrific sites are a "ticking time bomb" and could lead to a new disease much like COVID-19 which has swept the world killing more than 25,000.
Another coronavirus named SARS was also linked to a similar market in southern China and led to the deaths of hundreds in 2002 and 2003.
Yet despite the Chinese government closing these grisly shops following the outbreak, countless others are still operating across Asia, reports The Mirror.
It boggles my mind how when we have so many diseases that emanate out of that unusual human-animal interface, that we don't just shut it down.
Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand, Burma, Indonesia and Laos all have a culture of selling exotic animals, dead and alive, for meat at wet markets.
Many of the sellers use a single blade to butcher a whole host of creatures – from dogs, bats, snakes and turtles.
According to the report, Indonesia's Tomohon market is "business as usual" local source say, despite the local mayor banning wild meat.
Barbecued bats are sold alongside monkeys, dogs and cats which are slaughtered in front of customers at the so-called "Extreme Market" - a moniker given because of its cruelty.
Like Dr. Anthony Fauci, Professor Andrew Cunningham, of the Zoological Society of London, has also called for a worldwide ban on wet markets insisting species which don't mix in the wild are vulnerable to catches viruses from each other.
A group of nurses gathered in New York for a strike and a press conference about their lack of personal protective equipmentCredit: EPA/JUSTIN LANE
A wet market in Guilin, China, selling dog meat as well as live hounds for slaughter
Dead bats sold for meat at Indonesia's Tomohon Extreme Meat market. Bats are widely believed to the source of COVID-19 and SARS
The outbreak was thought to have started at the Hua'nan food market in Wuhan