9 Churches in Seoul Violating Quarantine Rules Detected... Over 280 People Recommended for Testing After Visiting Yeolbang Center

[Asia Economy Reporter Jo In-kyung] The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced on the 11th that, after conducting on-site inspections of 1,300 religious facilities across Seoul in cooperation with district offices on the 10th, it identified nine churches that violated quarantine rules.

The violations included exceeding the allowed number of participants for non-face-to-face gatherings at five churches, holding in-person worship services at two churches, and two preachers not wearing masks. The city plans to take strict measures such as banning gatherings against these churches.

Additionally, the city stated that it has issued orders for diagnostic testing starting from the 5th to 283 visitors with Seoul addresses from the list of visitors to the Yeollam Center received from the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters, encouraging them to undergo COVID-19 testing.

By the 8th, 96 people (33.9%) had completed testing, among whom five tested positive. There are 169 people who have not been tested; among them, 45 plan to be tested, but 45 refuse testing citing reasons such as not having visited the Yeollam Center. There are also 79 people who cannot be contacted due to unreachable phone numbers or disconnected lines.

The city will issue a second order for diagnostic testing urging the 169 untested individuals to get tested by the 15th, and starting from the 11th, will visit the addresses of untested individuals directly with district offices and the police to encourage testing and confirm their presence. Furthermore, those who refuse testing without valid reasons will face strict measures including legal action.

Baek Woon-seok, Director of Seoul’s Cultural Policy Division, said, "We strongly recommend that all Seoul citizens who visited the Yeollam Center promptly visit the nearest screening clinic and get tested by the 15th."

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