Hapcheon-gun Cancels 2021 New Year's Eve Bell-Ringing Event for Residents

Event Cancellation Decision Due to Spread of Omicron Variant Virus

Hapcheon County Office Building Exterior

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Choi Soon-kyung] Hapcheon-gun, Gyeongnam Province announced on the 13th that it will completely cancel the New Year's Eve bell-ringing event for residents, which was scheduled for the end of the year, due to the rapid increase in confirmed cases of COVID-19 and the spread of the Omicron variant.

Every year on December 31, about 2,000 residents have gathered in front of the Daejonggak to hold the bell-ringing event to see off the old year and welcome the new year.

However, as COVID-19 is resurging nationwide with a sharp increase in confirmed cases and the highly transmissible Omicron variant is spreading, the county has decided to fully cancel the event again this year for the health and safety of its residents.

County Governor Moon Jun-hee said, “Recently, many COVID-19 cases have occurred in our area, and holding a large-scale bell-ringing event where crowds gather could cause a mass infection. This decision was made with that in mind, so we ask for the understanding and cooperation of all residents.”

Meanwhile, 31 new COVID-19 cases were reported in Hapcheon-gun in December alone, and the county is known to have implemented strengthened quarantine rules from the 13th, including a ban on gatherings of five or more public officials, to block the spread of COVID-19 in the region.

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