2 More Confirmed Cases Among Restaurant Owners Linked to Taxi Driver in Hamyang, Gyeongnam... 4 Cases in Two Days Raise Alarm

Spread among colleagues and restaurant staff over two days from the 11th to 12th
Wife and post office delivery worker son tested negative the previous day

On the afternoon of the 11th, students at a girls' middle school in Daejeon are undergoing COVID-19 diagnostic testing. [Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yong-woo, Hamyang=Reporter Choi Soon-kyung] In Hamyang, Gyeongnam, the number of COVID-19 confirmed cases originating from a taxi driver increased by 2 in one day, bringing the total to 4.

Since the domestic COVID-19 outbreak, the "clean" Hamyang area, which had only one patient until recently, confirmed 4 cases over two days starting from the 11th, raising alarms for the quarantine authorities.

After the first confirmed case on the 11th from a 'Jirisan Taxi' driver in Hamyang, infections were confirmed in 4 people by the 12th, including a fellow taxi driver and the owner of a restaurant used by the taxi drivers, heightening tension in the Hamyang area over the potential emergence of a community cluster infection.

According to Gyeongnam Province, on the morning of the 12th, two women in their 50s and 60s living in Hamyang (Gyeongnam cases 267 and 268) tested positive. They are the owners of the restaurants 'Joeun Sikdang' and 'Nureongi Bapsang' respectively, both located in Hamyang.

They were identified as contacts of a male taxi driver in his 50s from Hamyang (Gyeongnam case 264) and a fellow taxi driver (case 265), who were confirmed positive on the 11th. Authorities have determined that they came into contact with the taxi drivers at their own restaurants.

The community infection that started from case 264, the 'Jirisan Taxi' driver, has now spread to 4 people. All four are currently being transferred to Masan Medical Center for treatment.

Fortunately, two close contacts of the Gyeongnam 264 taxi driver, his wife and son who works as a post office delivery worker, tested negative in tests conducted the previous day.

Gyeongnam Province and quarantine authorities are conducting extensive epidemiological investigations targeting the taxi drivers and their contacts.

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