Family Gathering Infection During Seollal Holiday... 6 Members of Busan Family Confirmed with COVID-19

Busan Health Authorities Confirm 19 Positive Cases on the 15th... 5 Are Family Members, 1 Case in Gyeongnam Suspected as Transmission Source

On the 15th, citizens who visited the temporary screening clinic set up at Seoul Station Plaza, where COVID-19 cluster infections are occurring mainly in the metropolitan area, are lining up to get tested. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yong-woo] Six members of a family who gathered for a family meeting in Busan during the Lunar New Year holiday tested positive for COVID-19.

Busan City health authorities announced on the afternoon of the 15th through an online briefing that "19 people from Busan case numbers 3030 to 3048 tested positive for COVID-19."

By region, there were 5 in Nam-gu, 4 in Haeundae-gu, 2 in Yeongdo-gu, 2 in Dongnae-gu, 2 in Suyeong-gu, 1 in Saha-gu, and 2 were overseas arrivals. One other case was a hospital patient.

Among the additional confirmed cases, 5 people spent time together at the home of parents in Nam-gu, Busan, from the 11th to the 12th during the Lunar New Year holiday along with Gyeongnam case number 2056.

Gyeongnam 2056, who had contact with a confirmed case at a multi-use facility and was tested, was confirmed positive on the 13th, and the others were confirmed positive on the same day.

The health authorities are investigating violations of the ban on private gatherings of five or more people, including immediate family during the Lunar New Year holiday, and are considering sanctions for violations of quarantine rules.

One person was also confirmed positive at Gijang Hospital, which is under group quarantine. So far, 20 people have been infected, including 9 patients, 5 staff members, and 6 contacts.

One family member of a dockworkers' union member who was in self-quarantine tested positive, increasing the related confirmed cases to 67, including 34 union members and 33 contacts.

One more case related to the cluster infection at Soonchunhyang Hospital in Seoul was confirmed. Additionally, one family member of a confirmed case who overlapped movement paths with a confirmed patient at a medical institution in Busan was also newly infected.

Two people who entered from Russia were also confirmed infected, and genetic testing related to variant viruses is currently underway. Both were symptomatic and tested positive, but the infection routes are unclear, and health authorities are conducting epidemiological investigations. The rest are cases of family transmission.

Busan City health authorities stated, "Although the four-day Lunar New Year holiday has ended and social distancing has been relaxed to level 1.5 starting today, we cannot let our guard down in quarantine."

With the additional confirmed cases today, the cumulative number of confirmed cases in Busan has risen to 3,048. The number of people in self-quarantine has accumulated to 5,470, including 2,335 contacts of confirmed cases and 3,135 overseas arrivals.

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