Total of 62 COVID-19 Confirmed Cases in Gangnam-gu... Over 10,000 Tested Samples Reached

[Asia Economy Reporter Jongil Park] As of the 20th, the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Gangnam-gu is reported to be 62.

Jung Soon-gyun, the mayor of Gangnam-gu, stated in a briefing on the same day, "There were no new confirmed cases on the 19th and 20th," adding, "A 35-year-old woman who returned from the United States on the 18th was confirmed positive, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 62."

◆Gangnam-gu COVID-19 Confirmed Cases: 62

Among them, 37 are overseas entrants, 17 are contacts of confirmed cases, and 25 are domestic cases including 3 related to the Shincheonji Church and Daegu.

As of the 20th, there are 1,578 people under self-quarantine managed by Gangnam-gu, and except for 10 domestic contacts, all are overseas entrants.

The number of self-quarantined individuals peaked at about 2,200 on the 11th, but as the number of overseas entrants has recently decreased and the number of people released from self-quarantine has increased, the number is gradually declining. It is expected to decrease to double digits by the end of this month.

◆Over 10,000 Tests Conducted

As of the 20th, 10,466 tests have been conducted at the Gangnam-gu Public Health Center screening clinic. Gangnam-gu is the first basic local government nationwide, excluding the Daegu and Gyeongbuk regions where many Shincheonji Church cases occurred, to surpass 10,000 tests.

This accounts for 10% of all tests conducted in Seoul and is the highest among the 25 autonomous districts in Seoul. It exceeds the numbers of metropolitan local governments such as Sejong Special Self-Governing City (5,807 tests), Jeju Province (9,098 tests), Ulsan Metropolitan City (9,499 tests), and Jeollabuk-do (9,390 tests), and is comparable to Gwangju Metropolitan City (11,134 tests).

This achievement is due to the principle of "early diagnosis and prevention of spread" in infectious disease response, which involved testing all residents of the same apartment complex, nearby residents, and coworkers regardless of symptoms after confirming the movements of confirmed cases, as well as conducting dual tests before and after self-quarantine for overseas entrants.

Additionally, weekly sampling tests have been conducted on elderly residents and workers at vulnerable facilities such as nursing homes and daycare centers. Unlike other local governments, Gangnam-gu proactively tested all employees of 70,000 local businesses and any residents from other regions who wished to be tested.

Since operating the public health center screening clinic from January 28, Gangnam-gu is the only one among Seoul’s 25 districts to operate 24 hours a day. From late February, before the full-scale spread of COVID-19, an average of 200 tests per day were conducted, leading to the early detection of 62 local residents and 6 residents from other regions, totaling 68 confirmed cases, thereby preventing further spread.

Gangnam-gu identifies overseas entrants in advance, transports them from Incheon Airport to the public health center by limousine bus, conducts tests, and then sends them home individually by ambulance, minimizing movement in preparation for any emergencies.

Mayor Jung Soon-gyun stated, "The district will conduct more thorough testing for overseas entrants and vulnerable groups such as the elderly to prevent local spread and achieve early resolution of COVID-19. In the future, we will establish an infectious disease management center by expanding and reorganizing the screening clinic to integrate infectious disease information through cooperation with related agencies and to enable proactive responses such as early containment of local infections."

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