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CEO & Publisher: Oh Young-jinDigital News Email: webmaster@koreatimes.co.krTel: 02-724-2114Online newspaper registration No: 서울,아52844Date of registration: 2020.02.05Masthead: The Korea TimesCopyright © koreatimes.co.kr. All rights reserved.

Korea's response to COVID-19 hailed by international experts

A quarantine official takes the temperature of a driver and collects a sputum sample to screen for the new coronavirus, Thursday, at a drive-thru testing facility at Yeungnam University Medical Center in Daegu, set up as a preventive measure against COVID-19. Such facilities have been expanded across the nation as the test is faster than a typical checkup at a hospital or public health center. / YonhapBy Jun Ji-hyeThe government's response to the outbreak of COVID-19 has been praised by a number of international health experts who expressed high regard for the country's significant test and diagnostic capability along with its real-time, transparent information system.Scott Gottlieb, the former commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), shared data on virus patients, released by the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC), via Twitter, Feb. 22, calling it “very detailed COVID-19 reporting from South Korean health officials.”“They have tested, or are awaiting results on almost 20,000 individuals, demonstrating a significant diagnosti

Feb 28, 2020
Korea's response to COVID-19 hailed by international experts
  • Coronavirus infections surpass 2,000 after 39 days
  • South Korea reports 3 more deaths from coronavirus, death toll rises to 16

Historic cathedral suspends Mass

A health worker conducts disinfection operations at Myeongdong Cathedral in Seoul, Wednesday. The Archdiocese of Seoul announced earlier this week that the 232 Catholic churches in Seoul would suspend Mass until March 8 because of the deadly coronavirus. This the first time for the church to suspend services since the first Catholic Mass was held here in 1898. / YonhapSome big megachurches' Sunday worship unaffected By Kang Hyun-kyungKorea's Catholic and Protestant churches have reacted differently to the ongoing coronavirus outbreak. Earlier this week, the Archdiocese of Seoul announced that 232 Catholic churches in the city would suspend Mass until March 8, in an attempt to stop the spread of the killer virus. Within days, Catholic churches in other parts of the country had joined the move to suspend all public gatherings, including Sunday Mass, for the foreseeable future.However, big Protestant churches are divided about their Sunday worships. The Yeouido Full Gospel Church ― the nation's largest church, with some 560,000 registered members ― had said earlier that it would reduce

Feb 28, 2020By Kang Hyun-kyung
Historic cathedral suspends Mass

Korea struggles to acquire hospital beds amid spike in coronavirus cases

A worker cleans his goggles to spray disinfectant as a precaution against the coronavirus at a shopping street in Seoul, Thursday, Feb. 27, 2020. APSouth Korean health authorities said Friday they are making utmost efforts to maximize efficiency in treating novel coronavirus patients amid a spike in new confirmed cases in the country's southeastern areas.Out of confirmed 1,017 COVID-19 patients in the southeastern city of Daegu, only 447 have been admitted to hospitals and another 570 are awaiting beds in hospitals while in self-quarantine at their homes as of early Thursday, according to city government officials.Daegu ― South Korea's fourth-largest city, with a population of 2.4 million ― has emerged as a hotbed of coronavirus outbreaks in South Korea, along with neighboring North Gyeongsang Province.Concerns over a possible shortage of hospital beds in the hardest-hit region escalated after a 75-year-old virus patient who is tied to a religious sect in Daegu died of respiratory failure earlier Thursday, bringing the nation's death toll to 13.The patient, despite having underlying

Feb 28, 2020
Korea struggles to acquire hospital beds amid spike in coronavirus cases
  • Korea's virus cases top 2,000 on massive testing

Korea's virus cases top 2,000 on massive testing

People wearing masks to prevent contracting the coronavirus take the elevator to buy masks at a department store in Seoul, Feb. 27, 2020. ReutersSouth Korea's confirmed cases of the new coronavirus surpassed 2,000 on Friday as the nation aggressively counters the fast-spreading virus with massive testing, particularly for 210,000 followers of a religious sect at the center of the epidemic.The 256 new cases brought the nation's total infections to 2,022, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC). Only two days ago, the number of infections exceeded 1,000.So far, 13 people have died in South Korea from the virus that emerged in China.South Korea confirmed its first new coronavirus case from a Chinese woman from Wuhan, the epicenter of the virus outbreak, on Jan. 20. More than half of newly confirmed cases are linked to a branch of a religious sect in the southeastern city of Daegu.Of the 256 new cases, 182 are in Daegu, 300 kilometers southeast of Seoul, and 49 are in the neighboring North Gyeongsang Province. The total number of infections in Daegu

Feb 28, 2020
Korea's virus cases top 2,000 on massive testing
  • Korea struggles to acquire hospital beds amid spike in coronavirus cases

Italy blasts virus panic

A woman wearing a protective face mask walks through Duomo square, as a coronavirus outbreak continues to grow in northern Italy, in Milan, Italy, Feb. 27, 2020. ReutersWith tourism tanking and panic rising, Italy tried to control the coronavirus in the realm of public perception Thursday as its outbreak grew to 650 cases and other countries took measures to limit travel to and from affected Italian regions. Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio and Health Minister Roberto Speranza appeared before foreign journalists in Rome to blame overblown media coverage for travel advisories warning visitors to stay away, event cancellations and special border screenings for people coming from hard-hit northern Italy. ``In Italy, we've gone from an epidemic risk to an `info-demic' of confirmed disinformation, which at this moment is hitting our flow of tourists, our business and our whole economic system,'' Di Maio said.While the ministers sought to put Italy's explosive experience with the virus into perspective, the national caseload kept climbing Civil protection chief Angelo Borrelli reported a new

Feb 28, 2020
Italy blasts virus panic

Drive-thru screening center

Quarantine officials conduct COVID-19 virus tests at a “drive-thru” screening center at Yeungnam University Medical Center in Daegu, Thursday, to assist in the prevention of human-to-human infections. /Yonhap

Feb 27, 2020By Bahk Eun-ji
Drive-thru screening center

Coronavirus infections center on Daegu, Shincheonji followers

Quarantine officials disinfect roads in Daegu, using a military vehicle, Thursday. The city has more than 1,000 coronavirus patients. / YonhapBy Kim Se-jeongThe coronavirus outbreak appears to be spiraling out of control here after 505 new cases were reported Thursday, with most being members of the Shincheonji Church in Daegu and North Gyeongsang Province, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC).The nationwide total for COVID-19 infections has now reached 1,766 as of 10:00 p.m. with 13 deaths ― the latest being a 73-year-old man from Daegu with an existing kidney problem. He was a member of the controversial Christian sect and was confirmed infected Tuesday, but had to wait at home to be hospitalized due to a shortage of hospital beds.The number of confirmed cases in Daegu alone stands at 1,132, almost two thirds of the total. Mayor Kwon Young-jin said the biggest challenge for Daegu was shortage of patient beds. The city only has 54 negative pressure rooms for patients in a serious condition. Those with minor symptoms stay in ordinary wards, but the

Feb 27, 2020By Kim Se-jeong
Coronavirus infections center on Daegu, Shincheonji followers
  • Ruling party, government fuel public's mistrust

Protestant churches urged to cancel Sunday worship

Yoido Full Gospel Church is one of many mega churches that wants to keep its Sunday worship./ Korea Times fileBy Kim Se-jeong Calls are growing for Yoido Full Gospel Church, Gwanglim Methodist Church and other protestant mega-churches to halt all worship services, including those on Sunday, amid growing fears of the spread of COVID-19.Myung Sung and Somang churches canceled all of their services after both members and a pastor were confirmed to have been infected, Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively. Onnuri Church was the first to voluntarily axe services, replacing them with online worship.However, Youngnak Presbyterian Church in Seoul has thus far kept its Sunday worship, claiming that it should continue in a time of crisis. The Full Gospel Church also refused to cancel its Sunday services.Korea is home to a number of protestant mega-churches with more than 10,000 members each. Seoul and Gyeonggi Province alone have at least 20. Some of the most concerned about the continuation of services are those who live near the places of worship. “I am not a member of the church and so

Feb 27, 2020By Kim Se-jeong
  • International students start to exit Korea over coronavirus fears
  • Mass hoarding leads to empty Nongshim shelves, limits on ramen
  • Ruling party, government fuel public's mistrust

China, 11 more countries restrict travelers from South Korea over coronavirus concern

Passengers bound for the U.S. wait in line for boarding at Incheon International Airport, Feb. 27. YonhapAbout a dozen additional countries and parts of China have slapped entry restrictions on travelers from South Korea, and the United States has raised its travel warning for its Asian ally as the wave of new coronavirus cases in the country showed no signs of let-up.The State Department's travel advisory was raised by one notch to Level 3, the second-highest on a four-tier scale. Level 4 advises people not to travel to the designated country. The U.S. has not put any entry restrictions from travelers from South Korea, however.U.S. President Donald Trump said it is not the right time to restrict travel to and from the country.Five provinces in China have tightened quarantine processes for international air travelers, with some restrictions applying to all passengers and some only to those coming from South Korea or Japan, according to Seoul's foreign ministry website Thursday.Mongolia, Fiji, the Philippines and the Seychelles imposed entry bans on South Korean nationals and visitors

Feb 27, 2020
China, 11 more countries restrict travelers from South Korea over coronavirus concern

For Chinese students

Officials at a public health center in Gwangju wrap packages consisting of facial masks, thermometers and hand sanitizers, Wednesday. The packages that are to help stop the spread of COVID-19 will be sent to Chinese students enrolled in local schools. / Yonhap

Feb 27, 2020
For Chinese students
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