Do you remember this Covid news footage?

[Sitonyourdressmavis]

Chatting to SIL last night and we were remembering news footage we watched before the Christmas of Covid when the news was coming out of China about this virus. We clearly remember watching as a family news footage (would have been on BBC normal news not online) from China of people collapsing and fitting in the streets then being zipped up on stretchers and body bags and loaded into a black and yellow van by hazmat suited doctors/army. We all clearly remember this , it was not a film. What was this footage? Covid didn't present like that at all? We remember being really scared. SiL is a nurse and we remember her saying "what the hell is this thing"
Anyone else remember this footage?

I posted links to the New York Times, they were from January 2020.

I am absolutely prepared to admit that I could be wrong and there was fairly general knowledge in mid-December of a new virus circulating, if only someone can show me evidence that shows this.

I previously said that I thought I saw it being discussed on mumsnet between Christmas and New Year 2019. I remember being off sick from work at this time and reading about it in bed. From what I've seen on this thread I think I'm mistaken about this and the threads were actually in early-mid January.

No one has proven anything of the sort. After Christmas, very early January, yes, but not before Christmas.
Unless it wasn’t covered on the BBC, Guardian or New York Times.
How did you hear about it?

I think it was early January but we possibly think of it as happening over Christmas because the children were still off school, decorations still up, tin of quality street still being worked through.

I remember this and it was the news strangely I can't find any record of it I remember it well as my friend was working in China and we were terrified for them it was made to look like some tyoe of zombie virus but you are right it was nothing like that x

I’ve found this thread from December 2019 to mid January 2020.

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/3779725-to-ask-again-about-whats-going-on-with-viruses

So all these people who knew about it then, no one thought to chip in here?

Take a look at this video, 'covid news footage from China Dec 2019' https://share.google/1opaarDZNg7FKi3EM

Indeed. All those saying they knew and talked about it at Christmas would surely be able to find something referring to it before Christmas? It's fine to think you're right but when shown evidence and facts the sensible thing to do is admit you were mistaken and conclude you must have misremembered.

Source: YouTube

When was the video posted in YouTube? I'm unclear what point you're making

There is nothing posted on MN one December 2019 to early January 2020 about China and viruses or flu. The only mentions are the usual chat about flu jabs and people having viruses. Nothing mentioning China, certainly nothing about people on the news dropping dead in the street. Wouldn’t someone have talked about it?

1st December 2020...a tear later, as it says

This is really interesting.

Although 48 replies including from healthcare workers and a virologist up until 30 December and not a single reference to China!

Just more evidence to strongly suggest it WASN’T widely known in the UK or in the media at all before NYE 2019.

Yet all these posters on here knew about it and will not be persuaded otherwise.

You were - I really don’t think everyone was. Anyway it’s Friday x I’m off to a restaurant x

I haven’t read all the responses but wanted to say I remember this too! Husband and I were recently talking about what sounds like this exact footage shown on the news right at the very beginning.

It did present like that when no one knew how to treat it and people were dying too quickly to handle the bodies, by the time it got to us luckily we had done an awful lot of prep in the hospitals (I’m NHS) and knew to get people on CPAP or ventilated. It was similar in Italy and we did have plans put in place or how to remove bodies from our corridors if it ever got that bad.

December 2025

Yeah this is absolutely supporting that it wasn't known about in December. Nobody mentioning china or Italy or anything close. Absolutely standard what's this virus going around thread that you'll find every year.

I remember it too

No you don’t.

I clearly remember watching BBC news and seeing a person with suspected COVID being caught with a net on a pole by Chinese police!

I remember seeing this, I was sure it was on the news.

And before your post I was certain that I first heard about it before Xmas 2019.

How odd

It was a brief news item. And it did reference China. And i remember being concerned.
it felt different to the usual bird/ swine flu outbreaks.

I saw this - I was staying in Barcelona with a friend who lives there just as it all kicked off and they were talking about travel etc (this is in my mind as I has to fly back yo my city and was concerned about being quarantine in BCN) and we also watched footage of authorities in China (people wearing white hazmat suits) breaking down the doors of supposed infected people… not a film, no confusion, 100% on the news