COVID-19 Spread from Incheon Academy Instructor... Concerns Over Local Transmission

On the afternoon of the 19th, as the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) spreads in the Incheon area, a coin karaoke room inside a large shopping complex in Michuhol-gu, Incheon, is closed. Health authorities urged users to voluntarily undergo testing, expressing concern about infection after a confirmed case visited this coin karaoke room. / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Lim Juhyung] As the number of confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) linked to an Incheon academy instructor who visited clubs in Itaewon, Seoul, has exceeded 20, concerns about the spread of community infection are growing.

According to Incheon City on the 19th, eight new confirmed cases related to A (25), an academy instructor in Michuhol-gu, were added on the same day, bringing the total to 25.

B (17), who visited a coin karaoke room frequented by students of the academy where A worked, and B's mother C (46) and father D (49), a personal taxi driver, all tested positive for COVID-19.

Additionally, two people who visited a PC room located in the same building as the coin karaoke room B visited were confirmed positive in the afternoon, and a Chinese couple who used D's personal taxi also tested positive.

It is known that hundreds of people requested specimen tests at the Michuhol-gu Public Health Center, claiming to have visited the coin karaoke room on the 6th. The number of COVID-19 confirmed cases may increase further.

Furthermore, specimen tests are being conducted on hundreds of passengers who took D's personal taxi from the 4th to the 17th. Incheon City has secured a list of 143 passengers who paid by card during that period and is conducting tests.

For passengers who paid in cash, the plan is to check their travel routes based on the taximeter (operation recording device) information and notify them via safety messages, encouraging them to get tested voluntarily.

Meanwhile, A visited clubs and pojangmacha (street food tents) in Itaewon, Seoul, from the 2nd to the morning of the 3rd and was confirmed positive for COVID-19 on the 9th. At that time, he was employed as an academy instructor but concealed this during the epidemiological investigation, claiming to be 'unemployed.'

Incheon City filed a complaint against A at the Michuhol Police Station on the 14th for obstructing the epidemiological investigation (violation of the Infectious Disease Prevention and Control Act).

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