정세균 "이번주 안에 이태원 클럽 방문자 전원 진단검사 실시 목표"
Health officials in South Korea, on alert over concerns of a community spread, hope to complete the tracking and testing of everyone who may have come into contact with COVID-19 in Seoul nightclubs by the end of this week.
Our Hong Yoo reports.
South Korea aims to locate all visitors to the Itaewon nightclubs and bars affected by the recent cluster infections within this week...in order for them to be tested for COVID-19.
Speaking at a government meeting on Wednesday, Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said there are still some people who could not be reached...but it's just a matter of time before they are tracked down.
He has urged for those people to get tested willingly and added that no personal information will be recorded...to prevent any issues of privacy.
Should they test positive for COVID-19, only their recent travel history will be checked so to prevent any secondhand transmissions.
Among those whose cell phones had connected to base stations in the close vicinity of the clubs between April 24th and May 6th, 11-percent were foreign nationals.
In response, Seoul has pledged to distribute details of the new COVID-19 measures in 12 different languages and will ask the relevant embassies to encourage their citizens to get tested.
Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon said the number of people getting tested daily in Seoul is 8 times larger due to the Itaewon community transmission.
But, has expressed concern over young people in their twenties and thirties who have a wide travel range and may have visited enclosed spaces...where the virus can be easily transmitted.
Meanwhile, three other nightclubs in Itaewon have been confirmed to have cases of COVID-19.
Mayor Park warned that if things get worse, stricter measures to ensure that entertainment facilities are following quarantine guidelines could be implemented.
Hong Yoo, Arirang News.