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| A plane from the presidential flight takes off from Seoul Air Base in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, Tuesday, to evacuate six South Koreans and one Japanese spouse from a quarantined cruise ship docked at a port in Yokohama, Japan. /Yonhap |
Gov't confirms 31st COVID-19 infection
By Bahk Eun-ji
A plane from the Korean presidential flight will return here early today carrying six Korean nationals and a Japanese spouse who were quarantined on a cruise ship in Yokohama, Japan, the government said Tuesday.
Among 14 South Koreans onboard the Diamond Princess ― nine passengers and five crewmembers ― only seven boarded the plane with the rest opting to stay on the ship. The Ministry of Health and Welfare said it was mainly due to their lack of a connection to the country and their residential status.
"Although only three of the passengers have relatives in South Korea, the government decided to bring them to Korea amid a rapid increase in onboard 2019-nCoV (COVID-19) infections," Vice Health Minister Kim Gang-lip said at a press briefing at the Government Complex in Sejong.
Since the first group of COVID-19 infections emerged on the cruise ship Feb. 5, the number of cases has surged to more than 450 out of 3,700 onboard, while none of the Koreans on the ship have yet to test positive for the virus.
Upon arrival at Gimpo International Airport, the evacuees will be transferred to Incheon International Airport where they will be quarantined for 14 days.
"The temporary living facility for the evacuees was selected in consideration of the small number of them," Kim said.
Meanwhile, the Korea Center for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) confirmed a new COVID-19 case, bringing the total number of infected people to 31.
According to the KCDC, the 31st patient is a 61-year-old Korean woman living in Daegu, North Gyeongsang Province. This patient had not recently traveled overseas nor been in contact with anyone infected with the virus. The woman tested positive at a public health center in her neighborhood on Monday after showing pneumonia-like symptoms. The woman has been quarantined at Daegu Medical Center for treatment, the center said.
The case has also raised concerns over the spread of the contagious virus in the Gyeongsang region as it marked the first time a case has been reported there. Until now, most cases have been in Seoul and Gyeonggi Province, with a small number of cases in Gwangju and Jeolla Province.
The KCDC said it is still unclear how the two cases prior to the 31st patient became infected with COVID-19, as they similarly had neither been in contact with other confirmed patients nor been abroad. The health authorities have been retracing the 31st patient's steps also in an attempt to find out how she became infected.
The number of people tested for the virus stood at 9,265 as of Tuesday, up from 8,171 the previous day. Among them, 8,277 tested negative and another 957 are currently under quarantine awaiting results.
