A video shared on Facebook allegedly shows people in China tearing down a 5G pole because it is “triggering the Corona symptoms.”

Verdict: False

The video comes from an August 2019 protest in Hong Kong. There is no evidence 5G causes the new coronavirus.

Fact Check:

The conspiracy theory that 5G technology causes the new coronavirus has circulated widely online in recent weeks. A video recently shared on Facebook shows people tearing down a 5G pole and removing its interior wiring, with the caption claiming, “The Chinese are destroying the 5G poles as they are aware that it is the thing triggering the Corona symptoms.”

China started using 5G networks, which provide faster connectivity and downloading speeds for smartphone users, around the same time the new coronavirus emerged in the country, according to USA Today. However, there is no connection between the implementation of fifth-generation cellular networks and COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus.

“Viruses cannot travel on radio waves/mobile networks. COVID-19 is spreading in many countries that do not have 5G mobile networks,” the World Health Organization states on its website. “COVID-19 is spread through respiratory droplets when an infected person coughs, sneezes or speaks. People can also be infected by touching a contaminated surface and then their eyes, mouth or nose.” (RELATED: Are Military Helicopters Spraying Pesticides Around The Country To Combat Coronavirus?)

The Guardian, a British daily newspaper, originally published the footage on YouTube in August 2019, months before the COVID-19 outbreak and widespread 5G usage in China began. The video actually shows Hong Kong protestors dismantling a smart lamp post that they feared was fitted with cameras, sensors and other surveillance equipment, according to its caption.

Kin Cheung, a photographer for The Associated Press, was present at the scene and took images similar to those in the video.