Wearing Waterproof Masks, Banning Regular Bath Passes... Strengthened Bathhouse Quarantine Measures in Gyeongnam Type

Kim Myung-seop, Spokesperson of Gyeongnam Province.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Saeyan] Gyeongsangnam-do recently announced on the 16th that it will implement the 'Gyeongnam-style Bathhouse Quarantine Strengthening Measures' in response to the ongoing cluster infections of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) related to bathhouses in Jinju and Geoje.

Following Governor Kim Kyung-soo's request on the 12th at the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters meeting for a fundamental government-wide quarantine plan related to bathhouses, Gyeongsangnam-do coordinated with the quarantine department, experts, and the Gyeongnam branch of the Korea Bathhouse Association to prepare the quarantine strengthening measures at the provincial level.

The quarantine strengthening measures will target 785 bathhouse businesses in the province from the 17th to the 28th.

During this period, COVID-19 testing will be conducted for all 4,100 managers and workers of bathhouse businesses in the province.

This is a preemptive measure to find any hidden infected individuals.

Bathhouse managers are required to install electronic entry logs for user verification and to conduct mandatory temperature checks and symptom confirmations for entrants.

In particular, the issuance of new regular bathhouse usage passes called 'Dal Bath'?which has been cited as one cause of recent cluster infections related to bathhouses?will be prohibited.

Existing regular passes already issued can still be used.

Additionally, bathhouse managers must post notices in visible locations for all users, reminding them to comply with capacity limits and social distancing, and to prohibit conversations during bathing.

Managers and workers must always wear masks both inside and outside the bath.

Bathhouse users are strongly encouraged to wear masks as much as possible inside the bath and sweating rooms, except in the changing rooms, and to refrain from conversations.

Consumption of water and beverages inside the bath is also prohibited.

Furthermore, to reduce the risk of transmission, users are strongly advised to minimize their time inside the bathhouse to within one hour.

Specifically, the use of floor mats in the changing rooms where food can be consumed or conversations can take place, as well as watching TV, is prohibited.

In addition, shower facilities and lockers must be used with one space left empty between users, ventilation must be performed at least three times a day, and full disinfection must be conducted at least once daily.

Kim Myung-seop, the provincial spokesperson, said, "The Gyeongnam branch of the Korea Bathhouse Association understands the current urgent situation well and has agreed to support and participate in the bathhouse quarantine strengthening measures," adding, "The strengthened quarantine rules are measures to block potential cluster infection risk factors within bathhouses, and we urge bathhouse managers and users to strictly comply."

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