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Korea culls 5.6 million birds to prevent highly pathogenic bird flu

Health officials check duck farms in Naju, South Jeolla Province, Dec. 8. YonhapSouth Korea said Wednesday it is speeding up efforts to cull poultry around farms infected with highly pathogenic bird flu amid growing concerns over the virus spreading nationwide.The country has culled 5.59 million birds as preventive measures since reporting the first farm-related case in late November, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs.Chickens accounted for 3.5 million, followed by quails with 1.2 million and ducks with 880,000. Local authorities slaughtered poultry within a 3-kilometer radius of infected farms.South Korea has reported 16 cases of highly pathogenic bird flu from farms. South Jeolla Province accounted for six, and Gyeonggi and North Jeolla provinces accounted for three infections each.There were also cases from the provinces of South and North Chungcheong, along with South Gyeongsang.Highly pathogenic avian influenza is contagious and can cause severe illness and even death in poultry.The country reported this year's first highly pathogenic avian influen

Dec 16, 2020
Korea culls 5.6 million birds to prevent highly pathogenic bird flu

21 Vietnamese students in Boryeong test positive for COVID-19

GettyimagesbankTwenty-one Vietnamese students living in a college dormitory in a central South Korean city have been diagnosed with COVID-19, local officials said Wednesday, reporting a rare coronavirus cluster of foreign nationals here.The nation's latest mass infection occurred at Ajou Motor College in Boryeong, a South Chungcheong Province city about 200 kilometers south of Seoul.The college reported its first confirmed case Monday, when a Vietnamese student residing in its dormitory tested positive for the coronavirus.Municipal health authorities then conducted coronavirus tests on everyone suspected of having come into contact with the first patient -- 67 foreign dormitory residents (50 from Vietnam, 16 from Uzbekistan and one from Thailand), 64 Korean dormitory residents and 31 school personnel.Through the tests, 20 Vietnamese students have been confirmed to be infected, the officials said, noting authorities are to administer coronavirus tests to all 400 other dormitory residents and school officials Wednesday.The municipal authorities are investigating the patients' travel an

Dec 16, 2020
21 Vietnamese students in Boryeong test positive for COVID-19

Daily virus cases hit new high of 1,078

A woman receives a COVID-19 test at a makeshift testing site in central Seoul on Dec. 14. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chulSouth Korea's daily new coronavirus cases hit another new high Wednesday in the face of alarming increases in cluster infections across the country, prompting health authorities to seriously consider adopting the toughest virus curbs.The country added 1,078 more COVID-19 cases, including 1,054 local infections, raising the total caseload to 45,442, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).Wednesday's daily caseload is higher than the previous record of 1,030 on Sunday, which was the first time for the number to breach the 1,000 mark.After falling to 718 on Monday due to fewer tests being carried out over the weekend, infections rebounded to 880 the previous day, as health authorities expanded free COVID-19 tests to find more potential cases.Health authorities expect the country's daily virus caseload may reach up to 1,200.Health authorities are focusing on securing more hospital beds while finding asymptomatic "hidden spreaders," inst

Dec 16, 2020
Daily virus cases hit new high of 1,078

Korea aims to acquire COVID-19 vaccines starting in Q1 2021: PM

Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun speaks during a vaccine procurement-related government meeting at the Government Complex in Seoul, Tuesday. / YonhapPrime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said Tuesday that the government plans to start acquiring new coronavirus vaccines in the first quarter of 2021.During a vaccine procurement-related government meeting, Chung said that authorities will establish a meticulous plan to allow prepurchased vaccines to be "acquired properly from the first quarter of next year" so that they can be administered according to plan.The pan-ministerial meeting at the government complex in Seoul was attended by the finance, foreign and health ministers and the head of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency.The prime minister acknowledged that there were growing demands for the swift introduction of vaccines, amid the resurgence of new virus cases across the country and news that vaccines were starting to be administered to the general public in Britain and the United States. Chung promised that he will personally oversee the entirety of the vaccine program, from pr

Dec 15, 2020
Korea aims to acquire COVID-19 vaccines starting in Q1 2021: PM

People rush to take free virus test

People line up to receive COVID-19 tests at a makeshift testing booth in front of Seoul Station, Tuesday. YonhapBy Bahk Eun-jiLong lines have formed in front of makeshift COVID-19 testing centers around Seoul as citizens rush to undergo free testing.Health authorities have set up 150 makeshift testing booths in Seoul and surrounding areas since Monday to provide free diagnostic tests through Jan. 3 even to those who have not come into contact with virus patients.The preemptive measure to expand the number of people being tested has come as the nation is experiencing a third wave of the pandemic with a growing number of asymptomatic patients.As people can also receive tests without providing personal information other than their mobile numbers, many visited the clinics with an intention to relieve anxiety regardless of whether they have any symptoms.“I got a phone call from my workplace on Monday that a confirmed patient visited the cafeteria in my workplace on Friday,” said Park Soo-youl, 67, who lives in Namyangju, Gyeonggi Province. “Although it was unlikely for m

Dec 15, 2020By Bahk Eun-ji
People rush to take free virus test

COVID-19 cluster at Gimje nursing home infects 62 people

Health officials prepare to conduct COVID-19 tests at a makeshift clinic in Gimje, North Jeolla Province, Tuesday. YonhapOver 60 coronavirus infections have been traced to an elderly nursing home in a quiet southwestern town, officials said Tuesday, the latest in a spate of infection clusters breaking out at multiuse facilities across the nation.The number of COVID-19 patients related to Canaan Nursing Home in Gimje, a North Jeolla Province city about 260 kilometers south of Seoul, has risen to 62 and is expected to grow further, the provincial officials said.The nursing home, where 123 people ― 69 residents and 54 employees ― used to stay, reported its first two confirmed cases Monday and 60 more inhabitants and others tested positive for the coronavirus Tuesday.The patients include 40 nursing home residents, 19 employees, a public service worker and their family members. Critically ill patients were transferred to hospitals, while mild cases were sent to residential treatment centers, the officials said.The authorities are conducting more coronavirus testing for other people and fa

Dec 15, 2020
COVID-19 cluster at Gimje nursing home infects 62 people

2020, the year COVID-19 changed our lives

By Jun Ji-hyeIt has been about 11 months since COVID-19, which originated from the Chinese city of Wuhan, broke out in Korea. Since the confirmation of the first virus case here in late January, the total caseload here has now passed 40,000 as of last week and continues to grow.People's daily lives began to change dramatically when the nation experienced the first wave of infections centered on the Daegu branch of the Shincheonji Church of Jesus, a minor religious sect, in February and March. Wearing face masks and increased frequency of hand washing have since become part of people's daily routine.For its part, the government first imposed social distancing rules March 22, asking churches and other facilities with a high risk of infection to suspend operations, while advising citizens to refrain from going outside and gathering in large groups.The nation's elementary, middle and high schools that usually start the new school year in early March remained closed for about two months. Schools resumed classes online in phases, and they reopened gradually starting May 13.An increasing nu

Dec 15, 2020By Jun Ji-hye
2020, the year COVID-19 changed our lives

Gov't to offer monthly cash of 300,000 won to boost low birthrate

GettyimagesbankSouth Korea on Tuesday announced a set of measures to expand perks for families and subsidies for children to try to boost the low birthrate that has plagued Asia's fourth-largest economy for more than a decade.The package, drawn up by the Presidential Committee on Aging Society and Population Policy, will be the foundation of the government's demographic policy over the next five years.First, the government will newly provide a 300,000-won (US$275) bonus every month to all infants below the age of 12 months starting in 2022. The monthly cash allowance will be gradually expanded to 500,000 won by 2025.The planned cash bonus is separate from the government's current monthly allowance of 100,000 won for each child under the age of 7, officials said.Also, the government will doll out a 2 million-won cash bonus to expectant parents to help cover their prenatal expenses starting in 2022.The government will also increase the current 600,000-won congratulatory allowance for each pregnant woman to 1 million won. The package also includes extra perks for working parents, as the

Dec 15, 2020
Gov't to offer monthly cash of 300,000 won to boost low birthrate

New virus cases bounce back to nearly 900

A medical worker takes samples from a man during a COVID-19 testing at a makeshift clinic in Seoul, Monday, Dec. 14, 2020. APSouth Korea's daily new coronavirus cases bounced back to nearly 900 Tuesday after a brief fall the previous day, as the country struggles to curb the nationwide spread of the virus in winter, warning that the toughest virus curbs may be adopted.The country added 880 more COVID-19 cases, including 848 local infections, raising the total caseload to 44,363, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).Tuesday's daily virus caseload marked a rise from 718 on Monday, but it stayed below the largest daily caseload ever of 1,030 new cases on Sunday and 950 cases on Saturday.Health authorities warn that the country's daily virus caseload may spike to 1,200 should the current pace be maintained."The latest transmissions are mostly traced to families, acquaintances and colleagues," KDCA chief Jeong Eun-kyeong said in a daily briefing Monday, urging people to avoid year-end gatherings.To speed up COVID-19 tests, South Korea started providing free

Dec 15, 2020
New virus cases bounce back to nearly 900
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