VIRUS DETECTED IN SEWAGE LATE LAST YEAR: STUDY

The coronavirus was present in Milan and Turin’s sewage systems as early as December, two months before the first COVID-19 cases were detected in Italy, a new study shows.

“Traces of SARS-COV-2 have been found in samples of waste water taken in Milan and Turin on Dec. 18 and in Bologna on Jan. 29,” said lead researcher Giuseppina La Rosa.

“More traces were detected in other test samples through January and February.”

Hospital tests in the coastal region of Liguria have also indicated the likelihood that the virus was present in the country at the end of last year, Italian newspapers have reported.