Bahk Eun-ji has been with The Korea Times since 2012, building a career across multiple desks. She began at the Business Desk, where she conducted in-depth interviews with key figures in Korea's corporate world. Later, she moved to the Politics & City Desk, focusing on education policy and social affairs. She later served as team leader of the digital content team, leading curation efforts on the newspaper’s homepage and reshaping print stories for social media audiences to enhance digital reach. Now back on the Politics Desk, she covers the National Assembly and the Ministry of National Defense, with a renewed focus on political developments.
Infections in Itaewon clubs spread across nation
A nightclub in Itaewon displays a sign to inform visitors of its voluntary closure after the Seoul city government issued an administrative order suspending operation of clubs and bars, Saturday. /Yonhap
By Bahk Eun-ji
Korea reports 34 new virus cases Sunday, largest in a month
By Bahk Eun-ji
The latest cluster infections in Itaewon, Seoul, have spread across the country over the past week, raising fears that the once-under-control coronavirus outbreak could spin out of control, according to health authorities, Sunday.
The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) confirmed 34 more cases, bringing the country's total to 10,874. Among the daily new cases, 26 people were associated with a 29-year-old man who went to clubs and bars in the multicultural entertainment district of Itaewon on May 2, while two were detected in Daegu and eight came from overseas.
The KCDC urged visitors of those clubs to self-isolate to contain the spread of the virus as the number of people assumed to have visited the clubs and bars would be inaccurate due to possible errors in the entry logs.
Clubs and bars in Itaewon, usually bustling with crowds of young people, were deserted over the weekend as the city government effectively suspended their operations in fears of a possible bigger outbreak. Under the administrative order, which took effect immediately Saturday, all nightclubs and bars in Seoul have been banned from hosting crowds of people.
Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon said such establishments would face harsh punishment if they breach the order. The order bans collective gatherings of people at such entertainment establishments, which is effectively an order to stop their business.
“We have no choice but to take such measures because we judged that the recommendation of self-control by the business owners will not be enough, considering the inaccuracy of entry logs of the clubs, and the man visited bars not only in Itaewon but also in Sinchon,” Park said during a press briefing at Seoul City Hall.
Park also pointed out that city officials have failed to contact more than 1,300 people on the documents, due to the inaccuracy of entry logs. He asked visitors to the establishments in the period to voluntarily go through screening, citing that the city will otherwise consult with police for additional measures.
Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung issued, Sunday, a “no-assembly” order for entertainment facilities such as clubs and bars following the cluster infection.
Lee said the measure is intended to prevent a “balloon effect” in Gyeonggi Province following Seoul's order to ban mass gatherings the previous day, in order to prevent further infections in the capital region.
Health authorities remain on high alert again as the number of infections linked to the patient is feared to rise further. The people who had visited the same establishments are estimated to number at least 1,510.
It is the first time in 28 days that the number of daily new cases fell to 32 on April 12 and had since fallen below 30. The fear of a resurgence of the virus came after the man, who is considered to be the first case in the cluster infection, visited five nightclubs and bars in Itaewon from May 1 early into the following morning.
The government shifted to a relaxed, everyday form of social distancing, allowing people to resume outdoor activities and public events as the outbreak had been showing signs of abating. A total of 9,610 people have been released after recovery, the KCDC said.