Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon: "The Situation in the US Is More Serious... Mandatory Self-Quarantine for All Overseas Arrivals"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jo In-kyung] Park Won-soon, the Mayor of Seoul, demanded that all incoming travelers be quarantined at home as cases of overseas inflow of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) are increasing.

At the regular online briefing on COVID-19 held on the morning of the 25th, Mayor Park said, "The number of confirmed cases in Seoul has increased by 13 from the previous day, totaling 347, of which 9 are overseas arrivals and 3 are family members of arrivals," adding, "Most of the confirmed cases in Seoul yesterday were related to overseas arrivals."

Mayor Park pointed out, "Now the focus of quarantine must shift to overseas arrivals." Currently, there are 1,300 arrivals from Europe per day and more than 2,000 from the United States, but only arrivals from Europe are being quarantined.

He said, "The situation in the United States may be more serious, so home quarantine for all foreign arrivals, including those from the U.S., is necessary," adding, "Fortunately, the government is also considering this favorably, so once we receive the list of Seoul residents among all arrivals, we will begin home quarantine for all."

He continued, "A large number of personnel and spaces for managing home quarantine will also be needed," and said, "We are sufficiently preparing at places such as the Human Resources Development Institute, so even if there is a surge in the number of people under home quarantine, we will succeed without major difficulties."