QUATERNARY INFECTIONS RELATED TO ITAEWON

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Another related case related to cluster infections in ITAEWON was reported in Incheon on Monday. The Itaewon-related infections are not as explosive as those linked with a religious sect in Daegu. But the problem is that quarternary infections have been caused through them while a larger number of regions have been affected.

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​Ten days have passed since the first Itaewon-related infection was reported. Roughly 170 cases have been confirmed to be linked to the clubbing district. Health authorities assessed that the Itaewon-related outbreak has now entered a phase of stability. The number of cases linked to Itaewon once jumped by up to 29 on a single day. But the number is now on a downward trend. A majority of those infections were reported in Seoul and its surrounding region. The capital saw the largest number of Itaewon-related infections at nearly 90, followed by Gyeonggi-do Province and Incheon. However, related cases have been confirmed in other regions across the nation from Chungcheong-do provinces to Jeollabukdo Province, Gyeongsangnam-do Province and even Jeju-do Island. Quarternary infections were reported within ten days after the related case was confirmed, as the latent period is shorter and the virus becomes infectious two days before symptoms appear. In South Korea, the number of new infections has increased by a daily average of 18.4 people over the past two weeks. It is up by nine, compared to the previous two weeks. But the infection source for five percent of the new cases remain unidentified. Concerns are lingering about a possibility of "silent transmission," as there could be some people who were infected with the virus but show no symptoms. They don't take tests and hang out in entertainment districts unwittingly.

[Soundbite] YOON TAE-HO(CENTRAL DISEASE CONTROL HQ) : "The possibility remains that there may be silent spreaders who have not yet been identified by quarantine officials. I am asking the people to thoroughly observe the "everyday life quarantine" guidelines."

Citizens are most worried about transmission through uncontrollable and unidentifiable sources.

[Soundbite] NA BAEK-JOO(SEOUL CITY GOV'T) : "We will continue to monitor if additional cases are reported from public facilities that previously saw infections."

Meanwhile, all new military conscripts will have to take coronavirus tests for the next eight weeks. The first group of some 3,800 conscripts received the tests on Monday.