Italy delivered the first shocking confirmation of locally transmitted coronavirus infections outside of Asia a year ago on Sunday, with back-to-back revelations of cases more than 150 kilometres apart in the country’s north.

In the days and weeks that followed, densely populated Lombardy would become the epicentre of Italy’s outbreak. But Vo, as one of the first towns in the west to be isolated, has a unique story, providing some of the first scientific insights into the deadly virus.

“There was a sense of bewilderment, I would call it,” said Dr Luca Rossetto, one of the practitioners in Vo. “Even myself, with an old specialisation in preventative hygiene, should have the right mindset. But there was an absolute disorientation.”

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