Club-Originated nth Infection, Karaoke Rooms Most Common... Pubs and Workplaces Follow (Update)

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.

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Dae-yeol] The number of confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) that spread through clubs in Itaewon, Seoul, has increased to 206 as of noon on the 21st. This is 10 more than the previous day.

According to the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters for COVID-19, 95 patients were infected after directly visiting the clubs, and 111 were infected through contact with patients such as family and acquaintances without visiting the clubs. By region, Seoul has the highest number with 101 cases, followed by Gyeonggi with 45, and Incheon with 40. There are 165 males and 41 females.

Regarding additional infection cases related to the Itaewon club cluster infection, among group facilities where multiple people gather, karaoke rooms accounted for the highest number of infections with 12 patients. Pubs and workplaces each had 11 cases, academies had 7, military units had 5, and medical institutions had 3. PC rooms and fitness centers had 1 case each. This analysis only includes patients presumed to have been infected in multi-use facilities, excluding homes, taxis, and others.

Deputy Director Kwon Jun-wook of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters said, "As a result of an environmental risk assessment of the coin karaoke rooms and PC rooms in the Vision Plaza building in Incheon, it was found that singing or talking in very narrow and poorly ventilated spaces generates a lot of droplets, and these places were evaluated as having a very high risk of transmission," urging caution.

Among the Itaewon club cluster infection patients, 25 are aged 18 or younger. Many of them are students, and since the high school seniors returned to school the day before and other grades are scheduled to return sequentially, the quarantine authorities requested strict adherence to infection prevention rules. Deputy Director Kwon said, "Students who have started group life due to school reopening should refrain from visiting karaoke rooms and PC rooms, and faculty and staff should avoid multi-use facilities such as clubs, pubs, and karaoke rooms."

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