Number of Domestic and Foreign Nationals Missing Contact After Entering Wuhan Decreases from 76 to 30

At the arrival hall of Terminal 1, Incheon International Airport, employees of the National Quarantine Station under the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency are measuring passengers' temperatures using thermal imaging cameras.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Heung-soon] The number of individuals who cannot be contacted among those subject to the full investigation for the novel coronavirus infection (Wuhan pneumonia) who entered from Wuhan, Hubei Province, China, has been confirmed to have decreased to 30.

According to the Central Disease Control Headquarters of the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on the 6th, among the subjects of the full investigation who entered from Wuhan, the number of people who cannot be contacted as of that day is 1 Korean national and 29 foreigners. Until the previous day (the 5th), the number of unreachable individuals was 76 in total, including 28 Korean nationals and 48 foreigners, but the number has decreased through efforts by health authorities to locate them.

Jung Eun-kyung, Director of the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said, "It is somewhat difficult to locate foreigners, but currently the National Police Agency is tracking their whereabouts using various investigative methods such as reviewing closed-circuit television (CCTV)," and added, "Local governments are actively managing the foreigners confirmed through these channels."

The government is conducting a full investigation targeting people who entered from Wuhan between January 13 and 26 to prevent the community spread of the novel coronavirus infection. The subjects include 1,160 Korean nationals and 1,831 foreigners, totaling 2,991 people. Among them, excluding those who have passed the maximum 14-day incubation period or those who have left the country, health authorities are monitoring 271 individuals.

Through the full investigation, a Chinese woman (57) was confirmed as the 23rd domestic case of the novel coronavirus infection yesterday. This patient entered the country on the 23rd of last month and was subject to the full investigation but had not been contacted until then. The Seoul Metropolitan Government, with the cooperation of the National Police Agency, located her. A CDC official stated, "It has been confirmed that the 23rd patient lived with a total of 8 people domestically," adding, "Five of them tested negative, two are currently undergoing testing, and detailed information such as the onset date, transmission route, and contacts requires further investigation."