Confirmed Cases Rise to 34 After Returning from Iraq Construction Site

COVID-19 Central Disease Control Headquarters Regular Briefing
Authorities: "Cases from Iraq and Qatar Entered the Country"
28 Confirmed at Quarantine Stage, 6 Confirmed in Community Isolation

Officials are guiding international arrivals at Incheon International Airport Terminal 1.

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Dae-yeol] The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases among Korean workers who returned after working at construction sites in Iraq has risen to 34. With thousands of new cases emerging daily in Iraq, health authorities anticipate a high likelihood of additional cases among those entering the country in the future.

According to the Central Disease Control Headquarters on the 16th, the confirmed cases among recent arrivals from Iraq traveled on flight QR 858, which routed through Doha, Qatar, before arriving in Korea. A total of 216 passengers from that flight entered the country. Of the 34 confirmed cases, 28 were identified during quarantine, and 6 were confirmed while in isolation within the community.

Authorities stated that since Iraq’s international airports are currently closed, the workers traveled to Qatar by chartered flight before entering Korea. All 34 confirmed cases are Korean nationals dispatched by domestic construction companies. Kwon Jun-wook, Deputy Director of the Central Disease Control Headquarters, said, “We understand that there are still workers remaining in Iraq, where over 80,000 cases have been confirmed so far, with nearly 3,000 new cases daily. We expect more people to return to Korea from Iraq.”

On the Russian deep-sea fishing vessel that docked at Busan Port on the 26th of last month, 3 out of 7 crew members who wished to disembark tested positive. Health authorities are conducting contact tracing and testing the remaining 22 crew members who have not disembarked. Starting today, COVID-19 testing will be conducted for all crew members on Russian vessels arriving in Korea if there is significant contact with domestic onboard workers during port quarantine.

According to health authorities, among the 708 confirmed cases in the past two weeks, 357 were imported cases, accounting for more than half of the total. Measures to reduce imported cases are being implemented, including increasing the number of countries requiring a negative COVID-19 PCR test certificate upon entry from six to more starting on the 20th.

Kwon Jun-wook, Deputy Director of the Central Disease Control Headquarters

Continuous Occurrence of Domestic Cluster Infections in Long-term Care Hospitals and Others

Infections acquired within the domestic community continue steadily. As of noon on this day, three confirmed cases were reported related to Siheung Seoul National University Hyo Long-term Care Hospital in Siheung, Gyeonggi Province. After one inpatient tested positive the previous day, one patient in the same room and one in the adjacent room were also infected. Health authorities have completed testing for 115 out of 182 patients and staff at the hospital, with 113 confirmed negative. Deputy Director Kwon said, “There is concern about additional confirmed cases arising from the Siheung Seoul National University Hyo Long-term Care Hospital case.”

Regarding the cluster outbreak in Uijeongbu, Gyeonggi Province, one additional family member of a gym-related confirmed case was diagnosed positive, bringing the total to 32 confirmed cases. By infection location, there are 9 cases in an apartment in Uijeongbu, 2 at the gym, and 21 from contacts outside the gym. In connection with the office infection in Gwanak-gu, Seoul, two additional visitors tested positive, increasing the total confirmed cases to 11. In the cluster infection related to a door-to-door sales meeting in Gwangju, one additional case was confirmed at a Gwangju cram school and two at a badminton club, raising the cumulative total to 144.

Meanwhile, the COVID-19 treatment drug Remdesivir has been supplied to 57 severe patients across 25 hospitals. For plasma therapy development, 950 recovered patients have volunteered to donate plasma, and plasma has been collected from 444 of them.

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