South Korea Adds Another 231 COVID-19 Cases Over Past 24 Hours

#14,936

Yesterday, after South Korea's COVID-19 case count passed 600, their Ministry of Health raised their  COVID-19 Alert To Highest Level - Severe.  Twenty-four hours later, and the latest confirmed case count has now passed 830, making South Korea the second most affected nation on earth (following Mainland China).

This is even more remarkable considering that as of 5 days ago, South Korea had only reported 31 cases in the previous 30 days. 

Not only are there now 7 deaths reported from COVID-19 in South Korea, media reports indicate that a growing number (n=11) of South Korean military personnel have tested positive for the virus.

The latest (1600hrs KST) summary from their CDC follows, after which I'll return with some details on the spread of the virus across the South Korean peninsula.

The afternoon update (above) is just a summary, but the morning update (issued 10 hours ago) provides more details about the cases (to that point). 

While the majority of cases continue to be epidemiologically linked to the Shincheon Daegu Church, and to a lesser extent to patients, staff, and visitors to Qingdao Daenam Hospital in Cheongdo, the geographic spread of cases continues to expand (see chart below).

 Some excerpts from the morning report follow:

Coronavirus Infection-19 Domestic Outbreak (February 24, Regular Briefing)

Created 2020-02-24

○ Local communities are spreading mainly in Daegu (Shincheon Daegu Church) and Gyeongbuk Qingdao (Namnam Hospital), which are special infectious areas.

-Additional cases are also mainly focused on the family of the examiner, group facilities, medical institutions, etc.

-Taking precautionary measures to prepare for the possibility of proliferation at the national level, taking into account the speed and pattern of propagation.

○ As a result, the 'Special Control Areas for Infectious Diseases' and other regions have combined anti-spreading strategies and containment strategies in consideration of their respective epidemic characteristics. 

-In the 'Infectious Disease Special Control Area', rather than tracking individual patients' movements, the company quickly checks and isolates and treats contact time when infection is possible, and concentrates medical resources on serious patients to minimize the damage such as death.

-Outside of the special management area, the case of Shincheon Daegu Church linkage is checked first, but detailed epidemiological investigations and quarantine measures are being implemented to minimize the spread of the area due to sporadic cases.

□ The Central Defense Response Headquarters will revise and distribute the National Prevention Regulations in accordance with the transition to the severe stage.

○ The public should observe hand washing and coughing manners and be careful not to touch their eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands. Wear a mask when visiting a medical institution, avoid visiting many people, and avoid contact with people with fever or respiratory symptoms.

○ Pregnant women, those over 65 years of age, and chronic diseases should not visit places where many people gather. Inevitably, a mask should be worn when visiting a medical institution or going out.

○ People who have fever or respiratory symptoms should refrain from going to school without going to school or going to work. In addition, if the fever persists above 38 degrees or the symptoms become severe, ① call the call center (☎1339, ☎Area code + 120) or the local public health center, or ② visit the screening center * first.

* Ministry of Health and Welfare ( www.mohw.go.kr , top banner 'selected clinic operating list'), disease management headquarter ( www.cdc.go.kr , top banner 'selected clinic')

○ Persons in the Specialized Infectious Disease Control Zone should refrain from going out and visiting other areas. Those who are in containment are advised to follow the instructions of the medical personnel or quarantine authorities and also strictly implement self-isolation rules.

-Participants, especially those who attended the meetings of Shincheon Daegu Church, thoroughly implement self-isolation measures and, in case of fever or respiratory symptoms, first contact the local public health center or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (1339) and follow the instructions. It was recommended to receive medical treatment through