"The Current COVID-19 Transmission Speed Is Faster Than During Daegu and Gyeongbuk"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Cho Hyun-ui] The quarantine authorities currently believe that the transmission speed of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) is faster than during the outbreak in the Daegu and Gyeongbuk regions in February to March.

On the 4th, at a regular briefing held at the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency in Osong, Chungbuk, Kwon Jun-wook, Deputy Director of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters (CDSCH), said, "I have heard from frontline epidemiologists that 'the transmission speed of COVID-19 is faster than when the outbreak occurred in Daegu and Gyeongbuk last time.'"

Deputy Director Kwon referred to research results from American researchers (Duke University, Los Alamos National Laboratory, etc.) estimating that some variant groups of the COVID-19 virus have higher transmissibility, stating, "A paper has been published indicating that the transmissibility of the GH type among COVID-19 viruses has increased about sixfold."

According to Deputy Director Kwon, the GH type, which has spread globally via Europe and the United States, has mostly been detected domestically since the early May outbreak originating from the Itaewon clubs.

Previously, 67 specimens from confirmed cases related to the Shincheonji Church of Jesus, the Temple of the Tabernacle of the Testimony (Shincheonji) Daegu church and the Daenam Hospital in Cheongdo, Gyeongbuk, in February to March, revealed the presence of the V group virus.

Regarding the transmissibility strength of the COVID-19 virus variant groups, Deputy Director Kwon, prefacing that it was his personal opinion, said, "I think it is a natural consequence that as the outbreak continues, the virus adapts and its transmissibility increases."

He added, "The fortunate thing is that the pathogenicity and fatality rate of the (GH) virus have not increased, and there are also results showing that neutralizing antibodies responding to COVID-19 virus also respond to the GH type."