hankyoreh

Quarantine workers disinfect a church in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, the site of a COVID-19 inflection cluster, on July 28. (Yonhap News)

The number of new local COVID-19 cases reached 30 per day on Aug. 8 and 9 amid an increase in infection clusters associated with churches in the Seoul Capital Area (SCA). The situation comes two weeks after the lifting of intensified disease prevention measures on July 24 that included a ban on small gatherings at churches -- an amount of time that also corresponds to the virus’s maximum incubation period. Now disease control authorities are weighing whether to reintroduce intensified control measures on religious gatherings.

On Aug. 9, the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) announced the number of new cases as of 12 am that day, which included 30 local cases and 13 cases among arriving overseas travelers. The day before, the numbers stood at 30 local cases and six imported cases, with 56 out of the 60 new local cases diagnosed over the weekend having come from the SCA (27 in Seoul, 26 in Gyeonggi Province, and three in Incheon).

The new cases were primarily associated with church assemblies where participants did not observe disease prevention guidelines. In addition, cases were found at a multi-level marketing business visited by congregation members, as well as at a daycare center and other workplaces. The number of new cases associated with Banseok Church in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, where the first patient was identified on Aug. 5, rose by 16 over the weekend. As of 12 pm on Aug. 9, the cumulative total stood at 24, including the original patient and nine other congregation members, one family member, one acquaintance, and 12 workplace-related cases. Multiple degrees of community transmission were observed as the virus spread from the church to the Forest Children City Daycare Center in Goyang’s Pung neighborhood.

Five additional cases over the weekend were associated with Rejoice 153 Church, also in Goyang, bringing the cumulative total to 20. Two of the patients were employees of Sangbuk Elementary School in Yangju, Gyeonggi Province, where the pastor’s wife works, while nine were associated with Elgoalinbio, a multi-level marketing business to which the pastor belonged. The company’s offices are located near the sites of previous infection clusters in Seoul’s Gangnam District, including a Hollys Coffee branch near Seolleung Station and the V Building in Seoul’s Yeoksam neighborhood, raising concerns about additional cases lurking in the surrounding area.

The government is currently mulling whether to reintroduce more stringent disease prevention measures for small religious gatherings. On Aug. 9, Health Minister Park Neung-hoo, first vice director of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters (CDSCHQ), noted that “outbreaks are happening again after the prohibition on small religious gatherings was lifted.”

“[The government is] currently discussing whether to reintroduce the same response measures that were previously implemented or whether to implement new, more stringent regulations,” he added. On July 10, the government banned group dining at religious facilities and various small religious gatherings outside of regular services; the prohibition was lifted two weeks later.

The city of Goyang preemptively imposed an administrative assembly restriction order on small gatherings and group dining at religious facilities, which is to remain in effect for two weeks from Aug. 9 to 23. Public facilities such as senior citizen community centers and libraries in neighborhoods affected by infection clusters -- including Jugyo, Seongsa 1, and Pungsan -- are to remain closed for two weeks under “Level 2 social distancing” guidelines. Frequently visited establishments such as markets, supermarkets, and restaurants will bar entry to visitors who are not wearing a mask.

Meanwhile, the CDSCHQ announced that the daily average of imported cases for the two-week period from July 26 to Aug. 8 stood at 21.4, down by 10 from 31.4 over the period from July 12 to 25 amid more stringent disease control policies for arriving international travelers, including the designation of six countries subject to “intensified disease control” measures.

By Choi Ha-yan, staff reporter, and Park Kyung-man, North Gyeonggi correspondent

Please direct comments or questions to [english@hani.co.kr]