Daejeon Octogenarian COVID-19 Death Linked to Infection from Sunbogeum Daejeon Woori Church

Citizens are lining up at public health centers in Daejeon to receive COVID-19 diagnostic tests. Provided by Daejeon City

[Asia Economy (Daejeon) Reporter Jeong Il-woong] On the 2nd, an elderly man in his 80s, Mr. A (Daejeon patient No. 206, Songchon-dong, Daedeok-gu, Daejeon), died during isolation treatment after being infected with the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Daejeon.

According to Daejeon City on the day, Mr. A is the third death in the region and is believed to have been infected by a member of the Full Gospel Daejeon Woori Church (Daejeon patient No. 194).

Mr. A and patient No. 194 are a married couple. Currently, patient No. 194 is hospitalized and receiving treatment in a negative pressure room at Chungnam National University Hospital.

Mr. A was classified as a close contact of his spouse, patient No. 194, who was asymptomatic, and was tested for COVID-19 on the 22nd of last month, after which he was confirmed positive.

After being admitted and treated at Chungnam National University Hospital, Mr. A died 11 days into isolation treatment due to rapidly worsening pneumonia symptoms. It is reported that Mr. A had underlying conditions such as hypertension, diabetes, and hyperlipidemia.

Meanwhile, the Full Gospel Daejeon Woori Church is a small to medium-sized church located in Birae-dong, Daedeok-gu, where 12 people were recently infected in a cluster. This church is recorded as the first case of cluster infection originating from a religious facility in Daejeon.

In particular, epidemiological investigations revealed that the church held in-person worship services on the 16th and 23rd of last month, around the time when an administrative order banning gatherings at religious facilities was issued.

Initially, the church’s pastor (Daejeon patient No. 259) and congregants stated that they had recently conducted non-face-to-face services, but the epidemiological investigation by health authorities revealed this to be false testimony.

Additionally, patient No. 194 (a member of the Full Gospel Daejeon Woori Church) was confirmed to have concealed attendance at the in-person worship service on the 16th during the epidemiological investigation after testing positive on the 21st of last month.

Regarding this, Jeong Hae-gyo, Director of the City’s Health and Welfare Bureau, said, "If patient No. 194 had not hidden their movements, the congregants could have been quarantined earlier and the in-person worship service on the 23rd could have been prevented." He added, "The city plans to simultaneously file a criminal complaint and claim damages, viewing the church pastor and patient No. 194 as obstructing quarantine efforts."

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