Pocheon Military Base COVID-19 Cases Rise to 36 (Comprehensive)

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] The number of confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) at an Army unit located in Pocheon-si, Gyeonggi-do has increased to over 30.

According to the military on the 5th, as of 7 a.m. that day, the total number of confirmed cases related to the Army unit in Naechon-myeon, Pocheon, rose to 36. These include 33 soldiers and 3 officers.

The military authorities, after three confirmed cases were reported at the unit early the previous morning, restricted troop movements and began mass testing of about 230 unit members, including officers. The mass testing revealed a cluster of infections. This group infection occurred despite most soldiers' leaves and outings being restricted under 'Social Distancing Level 2,' and the infection route remains unclear, raising concerns.

The military is focusing on the fact that one of the three officers, Mr. A, obtained the unit commander's approval to visit his home in Seoul on the 26th and 27th of last month. Apart from this officer, none of the confirmed cases had contact outside the unit. Since September, no soldiers in this unit have taken leave, gone out, or stayed overnight outside the unit under 'Social Distancing Level 2,' and the other two confirmed officers are known to be living within the unit. Additionally, PCR tests for several civilians entering the unit for environmental cleaning and cooking support all returned negative results.

Currently, all military units have temporarily suspended leave departures, except for exceptional cases such as emergency leave, until the 11th of this month. Outings are only allowed under the commander's discretion and limited to cases where no infection cases have occurred in the unit's area for one week. Overnight stays outside the unit have been suspended since February.

A military official stated, "Considering the possibility that the officer is the source of transmission within the military, we plan to focus on an in-depth epidemiological investigation, including tracking his movements during outings."

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