12 Confirmed COVID-19 Cases After Congregants Gather for Meal at Changwon Church... Fines Imposed

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Saeyan] Changwon City in Gyeongnam announced on the 21st that it will impose fines on a church in Jinhae-gu and its congregants who shared food after worship at the church.

From the 19th to the morning of the 21st, 12 out of 30 congregants of this church who either attended the worship service or participated in the post-worship meal gathering tested positive for COVID-19.

The first confirmed case in this church showed COVID-19 symptoms such as muscle pain and body aches starting around the 11th.

Changwon City determined that the congregant was initially infected with COVID-19 and then transmitted it to family members as well as other church members.

COVID-19 prevention guidelines allow worship services in churches but prohibit the consumption of food.

Changwon City confirmed that 10 out of 30 congregants violated COVID-19 prevention guidelines by sharing food in the church cafeteria after worship on the 13th.

The remaining church members have been classified as close contacts and are under self-quarantine, so the number of confirmed cases may increase.

Changwon City decided to impose a fine of 1.5 million KRW on the church for holding the meal gathering in violation of COVID-19 prevention guidelines, and fines of 100,000 KRW each on the 10 congregants who attended the meal gathering.

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