Assemblyman Jo O-seop: "Highway Rest Area Quarantine Equipment Is Inadequate"

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Yoon Jamin] Despite concerns that highway rest areas could become potential hosts for COVID-19, it has been revealed that the quarantine equipment at these rest areas is inadequate.

On the 14th, Assemblyman Jo O-seop (Democratic Party of Korea, Gwangju Buk-gu Gap) stated that the highway rest areas visited by confirmed COVID-19 cases during the routes of charter buses participating in the August 15 Liberation Day rally in downtown Seoul, which caused the second wave of COVID-19 infections, pose a risk of becoming hosts for the infectious disease.

The Central Disease Control Headquarters announced that the cumulative number of confirmed COVID-19 cases related to the August 15 Liberation Day rally in downtown Seoul is 623, with 273 cases in the metropolitan area and 350 cases in non-metropolitan areas.

The charter buses participating in the Liberation Day rally in downtown Seoul totaled 296 buses from Daegu (51 buses), Gyeongnam (49 buses), Gyeongbuk (46 buses), Busan (32 buses), Daejeon (30 buses), Chungnam (20 buses), Chungbuk (16 buses), Ulsan (14 buses), Gangwon (15 buses), Jeonbuk (9 buses), Gyeonggi (5 buses), Jeonnam (4 buses), Gwangju (4 buses), and Sejong (1 bus).

Assemblyman Jo analyzed the "charter bus routes used for the August 15 rally" submitted by 13 metropolitan cities and provinces nationwide (data from Seoul, Jeonnam, and Chungbuk were not submitted) and found that two confirmed participants passed through six rest areas: Anseong Sang and Ha (up and down), Eonyang, Deokpyeong, Giheung, and Cheongdo rest areas.

Classified by rest area, the numbers of people who passed through are as follows: ▲ Anseong Rest Area Upbound (Daegu 547, Chungnam 36, total 583) ▲ Anseong Rest Area Downbound (Daegu 598, Jeonbuk 186, total 784) ▲ Eonyang Rest Area (Busan 67) ▲ Deokpyeong Rest Area (Daegu 166, Busan 67, Ulsan 381, Gangwon 116, total 730) ▲ Giheung Rest Area (Daegu 73, Gwangju 190, Busan 37, Jeonbuk 61, total 361) ▲ Cheongdo Rest Area (Busan 37), totaling 2,562 people (including duplicates) who passed through.

However, none of these six rest areas, which were visited by both confirmed participants and charter buses from the Liberation Day rally, had even one thermal imaging camera.

Only Deokpyeong Rest Area was equipped with eight fever check devices, while the other rest areas had only one or two devices each.

The situation with disinfection equipment was similar; except for Deokpyeong Rest Area, which had seven devices, all others had only one to three.

The possession status of other quarantine equipment such as partition screens and antibacterial films was also similar.

This situation was similar across rest areas nationwide.

Among 195 rest areas nationwide, only 10 (5.1%) have at least one thermal imaging camera, and the average number of fever check devices is 1.7, which is far too few to check every entrance door leading indoors.

Even these were procured with support from local governments or budgets from rest area operating companies, while the Korea Expressway Corporation, the supervisory agency, has been passive, stating that the budget should be supported by local governments.

Moreover, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport appears unaware that only 10 out of 195 rest areas have thermal imaging cameras, as it recently sent an official letter to the Korea Expressway Corporation requesting the 'additional' installation of thermal imaging cameras at highway rest areas in preparation for Chuseok, raising criticism of its irresponsibility in frontline COVID-19 response.

Assemblyman Jo said, "Following the August 15 Liberation Day rally in downtown Seoul, there was a second large-scale outbreak in local areas such as Gwangju, Jeonnam, Chungnam, and Gyeongnam, leading some cities and provinces to raise social distancing to level 2.5," adding, "Highway rest areas are places where thousands to tens of thousands of unspecified people pass through daily nationwide, so the Korea Expressway Corporation, as the supervisory agency, should not hesitate to provide at least basic equipment such as thermal imaging cameras."

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