2002–2003Reputable sourceWell documented
SARS: The First Epidemic of the 21st Century
On the timeline · around 2002–2003 · The Modern Age
What happened
In late 2002 a deadly new respiratory disease emerged in southern China. Caused by a coronavirus, SARS — severe acute respiratory syndrome — spread to some thirty countries in early 2003 via air travel, infecting around 8,000 people and killing about 800, roughly one in ten. An unprecedented global response contained it within months.
Why it matters
SARS was the first new epidemic disease of the 21st century and a warning of the danger of coronaviruses jumping from animals to humans. The swift international cooperation that stopped it — and the lessons it taught — would shape the response to COVID-19 two decades later.
Sources
- World Health Organization (EMRO). Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) · Reputable source