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Incheon International Airport’s National Quarantine Station, where South Korean nationals repatriated from a Japanese cruise ship are being quarantined amid the current novel coronavirus outbreak. (Yonhap News)

Following a major coronavirus outbreak aboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship that’s under quarantine at the Japanese harbor of Yokohama, the South Korean government has decided to ban entry to the country for non-Koreans who have disembarked from the ship. Seven South Koreans and family members who were flown to Gimpo International Airport on the morning of Feb. 19 on a government charter flight after leaving the Diamond Princess will be quarantined at temporary facilities near Incheon International Airport.

“We have requested a ban on entry to South Korea for non-South Koreans disembarking from the Japanese cruise ship,” said Kim Gang-rip, deputy director of the government’s central disease control headquarters, in a regular briefing that day. While entry is to be allowed for South Korean nationals who were on board the vessel, they are to remain in isolation for 14 days. The Japanese government decided to permit disembarkation from the cruise ship between Feb. 19 and 21 for individuals who received negative results in COVID-19 testing.

The measures announced by the central disaster management headquarters that day were seen as intended to bar entry in the interest of disease prevention even in the case of persons who were allowed off the vessel after testing negative. The South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) has requested a list of Diamond Princess passengers from the Japanese government for its entry ban.

After disembarking from the cruise ship and boarding a government charter aircraft to South Korea, six South Koreans and one Japanese spouse were transported to temporary living quarters at the Incheon Airport National Quarantine Station upon their arrival at Gimpo International Airport that morning. While none has yet shown any significant symptoms, they will be required to remain in isolation for 14 days as a precautionary measure. The facility was established to prevent the spread of infectious diseases from overseas and reportedly includes 50 negative pressure isolation units. The individuals will be permitted to leave the facility if they continue to test negative.

“We believe the other eight South Korean nationals remaining on the vessel will be disembarking in turn starting today,” explained Kang Hyeong-sik, an overseas safety management planning officer for MOFA, on Feb. 19.

A total of 3,711 people were on board the Diamond Princess, including 2,666 passengers and 1,045 crew members. As of Feb. 18, around 2,900 people remained on the vessel following the transportation of infected individuals and US nationals to hospitals and their home country.

By Noh Ji-won, staff reporter

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