Jeonnam, 5 Student Confirmed Cases Per Day... Education Authorities on High Alert

Students are undergoing COVID-19 diagnostic tests at an elementary school in Suncheon. Photo by Jeonnam Provincial Office of Education

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Jun-kyung] In Jeonnam Suncheon, Mokpo, and Naju, five students tested positive for COVID-19 within a day, causing the education authorities to be on high alert.

According to the Jeonnam Provincial Office of Education on the 31st, on the 28th alone, three elementary students in Suncheon, one high school student in Naju, and one student from an accredited lifelong education facility in Mokpo were confirmed positive for COVID-19, totaling five cases.

Additionally, on the 30th, a teenage female student in Suncheon (Suncheon case 64, Jeonnam case 142), who was under self-quarantine, tested positive for COVID-19. This student had been in contact with a family member infected at ‘Kim Seonsaeng Fitness’ (Suncheon case 43) and had been self-quarantining at home since the 25th.

The provincial education office immediately switched the schools with confirmed cases to remote classes according to the infectious disease manual and conducted emergency disinfection at all educational facilities to prevent further infections.

At an elementary school in Suncheon, where two students tested positive in one day, a mobile screening clinic was set up to conduct diagnostic tests on all 343 students who attended school together with the two confirmed cases.

On that day, kindergarten and grades 1, 2, 3, and 6 attended school, and on the 25th and 28th, the mothers of the two students were under voluntary quarantine due to overlapping movement paths with other confirmed cases in Suncheon.

With the nationwide trend of infection spreading continuing, the provincial education office warned that additional infections could occur anytime and anywhere beyond these schools and urged all faculty and students to refrain from unnecessary outings and strictly follow quarantine guidelines.

Superintendent Jang Seok-woong stated, “This is probably the most serious and critical situation since the COVID-19 outbreak,” and added, “All members of the educational community must respond to quarantine with extraordinary determination and strictly adhere to preventive measures to ensure that our precious students and staff do not get infected with COVID-19 any further.”

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