33 COVID-19 Cases in Military... Leave Restrictions for Soldiers Based on Commanders' Decisions

As social distancing was adjusted to Level 1, military personnel's leave, which had been restricted to prevent the spread of COVID-19, was fully reinstated. On the 12th, at Seoul Station, a soldier is waiting in the lounge to use the TMO service. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] Thirty-one confirmed cases of COVID-19 have been reported at an Army unit located in Cheorwon, Gangwon Province.

According to the Ministry of National Defense on the 23rd, as of the morning of that day, a total of 31 additional cases were confirmed at the Cheorwon unit, including 5 officers and 26 soldiers. The cumulative number of confirmed cases at the unit stands at 36 as of that date.

The military is conducting diagnostic tests on unit members while controlling troop movements. The military authorities explained that the exact route of infection is still under investigation.

However, it has been identified that after a soldier belonging to an Army unit in Pocheon, Gyeonggi Province, was dispatched to the Cheorwon unit between the 9th and 13th, he tested positive on the 20th, followed by a cluster of confirmed cases at the Cheorwon unit.

At that time, the Pocheon soldier had not taken leave other than the dispatch, and no confirmed cases were found within the unit, but symptoms appeared and he was tested, resulting in a positive diagnosis.

Meanwhile, one additional officer was confirmed positive at another unit in Cheorwon and one at an Army unit in Hwacheon, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the military to 33 on that day.

As of that day, the cumulative number of confirmed cases in the military is 263, with 96 currently undergoing treatment.