SARS-CoV-2 spillover into hospital outdoor environments
Dayi Zhang, Xian Zhang, Yunfeng Yang, Xia Huang, Jingkun Jiang, Miao Li, Haibo Ling, Jing Li, Yi Liu, Guanghe Li, Weiwei Li, Chuan Yi, Ting Zhang, Yongzhong Jiang, Yan Xiong, Zhenyu He, Xinzi Wang, Songqiang Deng, Peng Zhao, Jiuhui Qu
Abstract
Facing the ongoing coronavirus infectious disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, many studies focus on severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in indoor environment, on solid surface or in wastewater. It remains unclear whether SARS-CoV-2 can spill over into outdoor environments and impose transmission risks to surrounding people and communities. In this study, we investigated the presence of SARS-CoV-2 by measuring viral RNA in 118 samples from outdoor environment of three hospitals in Wuhan. We detected SARS-CoV-2 in soils (205–550 copies/g), aerosols (285−1,130 copies/m3) and wastewaters (255−18,744 copies/L) in locations close to hospital departments receiving COVID-19 patients or in wastewater treatment sectors. These findings revealed a significant viral spillover in hospital outdoor environments that was possibly caused by respiratory droplets from patients or aerosolized particles from wastewater containing SARS-CoV-2. In contrast, SARS-CoV-2 was not detected in other areas or on surfaces with regular implemented disinfection. Soils may behave as viral warehouse through deposition and serve as a secondary source spreading SARS-CoV-2 for a prolonged time. For the first time, our findings demonstrate that there are high-risk areas out of expectation in hospital outdoor environments to spread SARS-CoV-2, calling for sealing of wastewater treatment unit and complete sanitation to prevent COVID-19 transmission risks.