1700 Additional Visitors Added to Itaewon Club List

Yongsan-gu Expands Visitor Investigation to 9 Itaewon Clubs... COVID-19 Testing Advised to 1,094 (78%) of 1,410 Visitors at ‘Made’ Visited by Seodaemun-gu Patient No. 21... 300 Visitors Confirmed at ‘Pink Elephant’ and ‘Peace Till’ Visited by Yongsan-gu Patient No. 31... Additional Investigation Underway at ‘The Fountain’ Visited by Jeonbuk Patient No. 20

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Yongsan-gu (District Mayor Seong Jang-hyun) has expanded the investigation targets to nine clubs and pubs, reporting that the spread of COVID-19 centered around entertainment facilities in the Itaewon area has occurred more extensively.

First, regarding ‘Made (club)’, which was reportedly visited by Seodaemun-gu patient No. 21 (a man in his 20s) on the 2nd, the district obtained the visitor log on the 12th and contacted 1,094 out of 1,410 visitors (78%) by phone (858) or text message (236) to advise them to refrain from going out and to get tested for COVID-19. For the 316 people (22%) who could not be reached due to false phone numbers, additional investigations such as credit card usage records are being conducted.

The district also confirmed that Yongsan-gu patient No. 31 (a man in his 20s) visited ‘Pink Elephant (club)’ on April 24 and ‘Pistil (pub)’ on May 4.

Seongdong-gu patient No. 22 (a woman in her 20s) is also known to have visited Pistil on the 4th. According to the visitor logs and credit card usage data secured by the district, approximately 300 people visited on that date. The district is providing related information to them as well.

Additionally, an investigation is underway for visitors to ‘The Fountain (pub)’, which was reportedly visited by Jeonbuk patient No. 20 (a man in his 30s) on the 5th.

The district previously completed a full investigation of 5,517 visitors to five clubs and pubs (King Club, Trunk, Queen, Soho, Him) where COVID-19 infections were reported between April 30 and May 5.

Among them, for the 1,982 people who could not be contacted, the district further investigated credit card usage records and identified 1,289 people on the list (after removing duplicates from the existing list, 629 people). They were advised to get tested for COVID-19. Companions are also being identified. The remaining unreachable individuals will be investigated jointly with the police. The district sent the related list to the police on the 12th.

The district has also strengthened publicity efforts targeting foreigners, as it was found that a significant number of foreigners visited clubs during the golden holiday period. On the 11th, the district sent urgent notices to 144 foreign embassies in Korea and posted related information on foreigner community social networking services (SNS) in Itaewon and Haebangchon (Yongsan 2-ga dong) areas.

Separately, on the 12th, Seoul City obtained a list of 10,905 people who connected to 17 base stations in the Itaewon area included in the main routes of confirmed patients from April 24 to May 6 from telecommunications companies, and sent text messages urging them to get tested for COVID-19. Seoul City plans to cross-check the base station list with previously secured lists to minimize unreachable contacts.

COVID-19 testing related to Itaewon clubs is conducted free of charge according to Seoul City’s policy. Simply informing that one visited Itaewon is sufficient; there is no need to confirm whether one visited a ‘specific club’. If concerned about identity exposure, individuals can provide only their contact information and receive testing ‘anonymously’.

The district added one more screening clinic on the 13th. Although the existing district health center screening clinic extended its operating hours to 24 hours, it could not handle the influx of people. Since the Itaewon club incident, the number of specimens collected at the health center reached 2,139 (as of 7 a.m. on the 13th), about 15 times the daily average before.

The additional screening clinic is located at Hannam-dong public parking lot (224-19 Itaewon-ro). Like the health center screening clinic, about 10 people work in shifts of 3 to 4 hours. It operates as a walk-through (pedestrian) system minimizing face-to-face contact between patients and medical staff. Operating hours are from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Besides the district office, Soonchunhyang University Seoul Hospital (59 Daesagwan-ro) also operates a screening clinic. Operating hours are from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

District Mayor Seong Jang-hyun said, “Visitors to clubs and pubs in the Itaewon area between April 24 and May 6 should get tested for COVID-19 at the nearest screening clinic regardless of symptoms,” and added, “The district will do its best to stabilize the situation as soon as possible.”

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