"When One Group Is Stabilized, a New Cluster Infection Soon Occurs"…Growing Concerns Among Health Authorities

On the afternoon of the 2nd, as the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) spreads in the Incheon area, a somber silence hangs over a church in Bupyeong-gu, Incheon, where confirmed cases have been reported.

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Dae-yeol] The number of COVID-19 cases related to small groups in pioneering churches in the Seoul metropolitan area has exceeded 70 in just five days.

According to the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters on the 5th, as of 0:00 that day, the number of confirmed cases in this cluster rose to 73. This is an increase of 7 confirmed cases in half a day from 66 cases reported the previous afternoon. After the first confirmed case was reported on the 31st of last month, it has spread into a large-scale cluster infection within five days.

The number of confirmed cases related to the door-to-door sales company 'Richway' located in Gwanak-gu, Seoul, was not disclosed separately, but it was stated that multiple confirmed cases have appeared and are being tracked and managed as a cluster infection case. Since the first patient was identified there on the 2nd, about 10 people have been confirmed positive as of the previous day.

Yoon Tae-ho, head of the Central Accident Response Headquarters' quarantine team, said at the regular briefing that day, "It is concerning for the quarantine authorities that as soon as one cluster infection is identified, managed, and stabilized, a new cluster infection occurs," adding, "It is important to reduce the spread speed in the metropolitan area so that the quarantine tracking system can control it before chain infections occur in the community."