Defense Ministry Official Who Dined with COVID-19 Confirmed Case Tests Negative

[Asia Economy Reporter Yang Nak-gyu] An active-duty officer working at the Ministry of National Defense building in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, was in close contact with a confirmed case of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) but tested 'negative' on the 25th.

A Ministry of National Defense official stated on the 25th, "An active-duty officer working at the Ministry of National Defense building was found to have been in close contact with a confirmed COVID-19 case, and although a test was requested, the result was negative."

The Ministry of National Defense controlled and disinfected the basement level 1 entrance that the officer had accessed and conducted emergency disinfection on two floors, showing a moment of tension.

On the morning of the same day, the Ministry of National Defense announced, "We are conducting a COVID-19 test on an active-duty officer working in the building," and "We are disinfecting the basement level 1 (including the cafeteria), 9th, and 10th floors of the facility."

The Ministry of National Defense also posted a notice at basement level 1 stating, "A close contact has been identified among the workers on the 9th floor of the Ministry of National Defense main building. Access is restricted for facility disinfection." It was confirmed that the officer had dined with a family member who had traveled to Europe around the 17th. The family member who dined together was confirmed positive for COVID-19 on the 24th, and the officer was confirmed to have come to work normally and moved around basement level 1 on the same day.

The Ministry of National Defense placed employees who worked with the officer under self-quarantine. If the officer had tested positive for COVID-19, the Ministry planned to close the Ministry of National Defense building for two days for disinfection.

The Ministry of National Defense had previously closed the press room and briefing room on the 25th and 26th of last month due to a suspected COVID-19 symptom case. The suspected case tested negative for COVID-19.

Meanwhile, as of 10 a.m. on the same day, the cumulative number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the military was 39, with 25 of them having recovered. One additional recovered case is an officer from an army unit in Daegu, and no new confirmed cases were reported on the day.

According to health authorities, about 180 people are in quarantine, and according to the military's own standards, about 1,590 people are under preventive quarantine.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.