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A South Korean man confirmed to have been infected with the coronavirus is transferred to a state-designated hospital in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, on Jan. 27. (Kim Myoung-jin, staff photographer)

After the fourth confirmed case of coronavirus infection by in South Korea on Jan. 27, there are growing fears that the disease will spread within the country. South Korean President Moon Jae-in has ordered the screening of everyone who has entered South Korea from the Chinese city of Wuhan, where the coronavirus is said to have originated, and the government upped its infectious disease alert level from “yellow” to “orange.” As of 6 pm on Monday, there were 2,804 confirmed cases of the new coronavirus and 81 fatalities in China alone, along with cases reported in 15 other countries.

On Monday, South Korea’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) said that a 55-year-old Korean man, who’d gone on a trip to Wuhan, in China’s Hubei Province, on Jan. 5, had been infected by the coronavirus. The man hadn’t exhibited any symptoms when he returned to Korea on Jan. 20, but had gone to a clinic in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, the next day with cold-like symptoms. The man returned to the clinic on Jan. 25 with a high fever and muscle pain. After the case was reported to the public health center, the man was transferred to a state-designated treatment facility (Seoul National University Bundang Hospital) on Jan. 26, where he tested positive on the morning of Jan. 27.

“Since the fourth patient tested positive at 8 am, we’ve been conducting an epidemiological survey, along with fumigation and other measures to contain the disease. The clinic that the patient visited has been closed, and we’re looking into whether he was wearing a mask and whom he came into contact with. We’ll release our findings on Tuesday morning,” the KCDC said.

Authorities have learned that the third confirmed patient, a 54-year-old Korean man, had gone to clinics, hotels, and restaurants from the time his symptoms appeared until he was placed in quarantine and had come into contact with 74 individuals during that time. Excluding the four individuals who tested positive, a total of 57 people have been quarantined after exhibiting suspicious symptoms, as of Monday morning. One of them is still being tested, but the other 56 have tested negative and been released from quarantine.

During a countermeasures meeting held over lunch with senior secretaries and aides at the Blue House on Monday, Moon asked officials to focus all their efforts on preventing the spread of the new coronavirus and on responding quickly while taking all necessary measures. He also ordered the screening of everyone who’d entered the country from Wuhan. Additionally, the KCDC said that 100 people who’d been under active surveillance after reporting mild symptoms to the health authorities following a trip to Wuhan would be tested for the disease.

Amid growing concerns that the disease may spread locally, South Korea’s Ministry of Health and Welfare has raised its infectious disease alert one level from “yellow” to “orange.” On Monday, an “incident response headquarters” for the new coronavirus was set up under Minister of Health and Welfare Park Neung-hoo. The headquarters will be in charge of supporting the KCDC’s disease control efforts and preventing the disease from spreading domestically.

By Park Hyun-jung and Lee Wan, staff reporters

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