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| A quarantine official disinfects a branch of the minor religious sect Shincheonji in Seodaemun, Seoul, Friday. The majority of new coronavirus patients in recent days were either members of the religious group or people they have come in contact with. Yonhap |
102 new patients confirmed as of 10 p.m. Friday
By Bahk Eun-ji
The coronavirus infection here reached "an epidemic proportion" Friday as 102 people were confirmed to have contracted the highly-contagious virus, raising the total to 206, according to government officials.
The number of COVID-19 (2019-nCoV) infections has quadrupled from 51 Wednesday with most new cases being traced to church services in the southeastern city of Daegu, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC). On Thursday, 53 new cases were reported.
The total accumulated number of confirmed cases in Daegu and its neighboring North Gyeongsang Province stood at 153, with the number of cases linked to a Daegu church coming to 128.
The number of confirmed cases at the Daenam Hospital in Cheongdo, near Daegu, stood at 16, including five nurses, according to the KCDC.
KCDC director Jeong Eun-kyeong during a press briefing early in the day confirmed that the majority of the new cases were "linked to the Shincheonji Church of Jesus in Daegu, where the 31st patient, the country's possible 'super spreader,' attended worship services."
The 61-year-old woman tested positive for the virus earlier this week, having already attended worship services at the church on Feb. 9 and Feb. 16.
As the most new infections have been traced in the city of Daegu, the 2.5 million inhabitants have been asked to stay indoors. Daegu and its neighboring Cheongdo County were designated as "special management zones" earlier in the day.
An office worker living and working in Daegu who requested to remain anonymous had to return home when he got to work Thursday as one of the people confirmed to have the coronavirus worked at a neighboring office.
"Almost all business activities have stopped here in Daegu. People don't go to restaurants and eat home or have food delivered, avoiding contact with people as much as possible," he said. "There also are mounting complaints against Shincheonji Church of Jesus and its followers."
To contain the spread of the virus across the country, the Ministry of Health and Welfare will allow hospitals to separate respiratory patients from others to prevent human-to-human transmission while those infected with the virus are being treated at hospitals.
"All pneumonia patients in Daegu hospitals will also be checked for the virus," said Health Minister Park Neung-hoo during a separate briefing in Seoul.
In addition, three soldiers were confirmed to have contracted the virus Friday, including an Air Force officer at the Gyeryongdae military headquarters. According to the KCDC, three cases were confirmed ― one each in the Army, the Navy and the Air Force.
The health authorities said all the three service members had visited or contacted people from the city of Daegu.
Meanwhile, the Seoul Metropolitan Government announced it would ban any demonstrations in downtown areas including Gwanghwamun Square, in an effort to improve containment efforts as the potentially fatal illness spread across the country.
Massive weekend rallies at Gwanghwamun Square and Seoul Plaza have recently raised concerns that COVID-19 could quickly spread in crowded places.
Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon also announced plans to shut down Seoul branches of the minor religious sect Shincheonji as the majority of the new cases appear to be related to the provincial church in Daegu.
