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On 3/11/20, WHO declared a pandemic. These quotes and photos recall that historic time

Three years ago, the novel coronavirus swept the world. Here are 24 quotes and 13 photos that sum up the reaction in the weeks before the World Health Organization's declaration of a global pandemic.
A South Korean child masks up to ride a scooter on Feb. 27, 2020 in Seoul.

Three years ago, on March 11, 2020, COVID-19 was officially designated a pandemic by the World Health Organization. The novel coronavirus had fanned out across the globe, and the world had lost its ability to contain it. Countries reacted to the emerging disease with a mix of denial, incredulity and fear. Here's what global health officials and political leaders were saying in the weeks leading up to that WHO declaration.

Jan. 5, 2020: WHO issued an announcement that not quite a week prior, their China Country Office had learned of "cases of pneumonia of unknown etiology (unknown cause) detected in Wuhan City, Hubei Province of China. As of 3 January 2020, a total of 44 patients with pneumonia of unknown etiology have been reported to WHO by the national authorities in China."

: WHO continued to what they knew of events in China. "Chinese authorities have made a preliminary determination of a novel (or new) coronavirus, identified in

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