Gyeongbuk Province, Daily Average Confirmed Cases from 4.4 at End of June to 59.3 Recently... Plans to Secure 2 Additional Dedicated Hospitals

Emergency Countermeasure Meeting Led by Governor Lee Cheol-woo on the 22nd with Mayors and County Heads... Reorganization of City and County Public Health Centers to Focus on Quarantine Functions

Governor Lee Cheol-woo is holding an emergency quarantine countermeasure meeting on the 22nd with the attendance of mayors, county heads, directors of three medical centers, and the head of the Gyeongbuk Infectious Disease Control Support Group.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Dong-guk] On the afternoon of the 22nd, Gyeongbuk Province held an 'Emergency Quarantine Measures' meeting via video conference to block the spread of COVID-19, chaired by Governor Lee Cheol-woo, with mayors and county heads, directors of three medical centers, and the head of the Gyeongbuk Infectious Disease Control Support Group in attendance.

In this meeting, the causes and trends of the recent increase in COVID-19 confirmed cases in the region were analyzed, and focused discussions were held on the implementation of corresponding quarantine measures.

The daily average number of confirmed cases in Gyeongbuk Province was only 4.4 eight weeks ago, but increased significantly to 12.9 six weeks ago, 59.9 two weeks ago, and 59.3 one week ago.

Amid this trend of spreading confirmed cases, Gyeongbuk Province set and decided to actively promote five key tasks: ▲strengthening response capabilities ▲stable bed management ▲increasing vaccination rates ▲targeted quarantine of group outbreak facilities ▲quarantine involving citizen participation.

First, to strengthen COVID-19 response capabilities, the province plans to expand regular and temporary staff at city and county health centers, reorganize functions focusing on infectious disease quarantine work, and increase public officials in charge of self-quarantine.

In addition to five dedicated infectious disease hospitals (500 beds), the province plans to secure an additional 367 beds at two facilities in consultation with the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters during crises. The existing dedicated infectious disease hospitals are Pohang Medical Center (165 beds), Gimcheon Medical Center (20 beds), Andong Medical Center (143 beds), Dongguk University Gyeongbuk Hospital (30 beds), and Yeongju Red Cross Hospital (142 beds).

Living treatment centers will operate a total of 596 beds across three locations: two centers (Gumi Nonghyup Training Center, Gyeongbuk Fire Academy) with 246 beds, plus the Mungyeong STX Resort Living Treatment Center with 350 beds opening on the 26th.

Especially for multi-use facilities frequently used by young people in their 20s and 30s such as indoor sports facilities, PC rooms, and karaoke rooms, special inspections enforcing industry-specific quarantine guidelines will be conducted, and administrative measures and gathering restrictions will be implemented for facilities violating quarantine rules.

Governor Lee Cheol-woo said, "As the rapid transmissibility of the Delta variant and the holiday season have led to the spread of infections in the local community, we must overcome the current crisis together by thoroughly operating the quarantine system," urging strict compliance with personal hygiene rules.

Meanwhile, from the 1st to the 22nd, 1,209 confirmed cases occurred in Gyeongbuk Province. By age group, those in their 20s and 30s accounted for 36.7%, and those in their 40s and 50s accounted for 33.3%, making up over 70%.

Among the confirmed cases, 998 (81.7%) were domestic nationals and 221 (18.3%) were foreigners. Infection routes were 29.5% contact with acquaintances, 29.3% facility-related, 24.7% family contact, and 13% under investigation. Notably, 257 cases (22.7% of total confirmed cases) were confirmed during self-quarantine.

The cumulative number of Delta variant confirmed cases in the province reached 191 by the 22nd, including 166 domestic cases and 25 imported cases, with 178 cases increasing since July.

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