Doctor Fails To Save Himself From A Deadly Virus

Dr. Li was working at the centre of the outbreak in December when he noticed 7 cases of a virus that he thought looked like SARS - the virus that led to a global epidemic in 2003. The cases were thought to come from the Huanan Seafood market in Wuhan and the patients were in quarantine in his hospital.

On December 30, Li Wenliang posted a message to his classmates regarding the patients and informed them about the illness that they had been diagnosed with (a SARS-like illness).

Li explained that the illness was a coronavirus — a large family of viruses that also includes severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) virus.

Li warned them about the outbreak and advised them to wear protractive clothes to avoid infection.

“I only wanted to remind my university classmates to be careful,” Li Wenliang said in the message.

But within hours, his messages had gone viral — without his name being blurred. "When I saw them circulating online, I realized that it was out of my control and I would probably be punished," Li said.

And he was right. Li was accused of rumor-mongering by the police. He was one of several medics targeted by police for trying to blow the whistle on the deadly virus in the early weeks of the outbreak. The virus has since claimed at least 425 lives and sickened more than 20,000 people globally, including Li.

He was tested several times for coronavirus; all of them came back negative. But On 30 January, he diagnosed positively. His diagnosis has sparked outrage across China, where a backlash is growing against state censorship around the illness and an initial delay in warning the public about the deadly virus.