The quarantine authorities are tightly tense as the number of corona19 confirmed at Sarangjeil Church in Seongbuk-gu, Seoul, which held a large-scale rally in Gwanghwamun during the last Liberation Day holiday, shows signs of spreading it across the country.

First of all, the number of confirmed cases is rapidly increasing due to fearful momentum.

Today (18th), according to the Central Defense Countermeasure Headquarters (Bang Daebon), Sarangjeil Church has rapidly increased from 5 people to 19 people → 59 people → 249 → 319 people on the 13th to 17th after the first confirmed cases on the 12th came out. I did.

This is the second largest number of confirmed cases among cases of COVID-19 infection in Korea.

In the domestic case, Shincheonji Daegu Church (5,214 people) is the largest, followed by Sarangjeil Church and Itaewon Club (277 people).

The quarantine authorities are also concerned about the fact that Sarangjeil Church has a large number of members and visitors, and that it has engaged in high-density activities.

The quarantine authorities believe that various activities have been carried out in this church, including not only regular worship, but also for members to stay and eat at the church.

Actually, out of the 4,000 visitors to Sarangjeil Church, the test result of about 2,000 people showed that the positive rate was quite high at 16%.

In this situation, the fact that Pastor Kwang-Hoon Jeon of this church held a Gwanghwamun assembly on the 15th is another reason the quarantine authorities are concerned about the possibility of a rapid spread of infection.

The former pastor who attended the meeting is confirmed.

Although the meeting was held outdoors, it was also believed to have shouted slogans, an act that could cause drooling in a crowded state.

The quarantine authorities have repeatedly requested that the participants undergo diagnostic tests, as it is highly likely that Corona 19 has spread among the members of the congregation.

Regarding the Liberation Day assembly at a briefing yesterday, Kang-rip Kim, the 1st general coordinator of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, said, "It was a meeting that was very dense and had close contact and had considerable risk, such as shouting slogans." Asked for an immediate examination."

In light of the trend of confirmed cases related to Sarangjeil Church, there are also concerns that the scale of infection transmission related to this church is causing a pandemic in the metropolitan area similar to the corona 19 pandemic in Daegu and Gyeongbuk in February and March.

Infectious disease experts predict that the next 1-2 weeks will be a climax in that'n-th infection' is already occurring through the group of church members, places visited, and contacts.

According to the quarantine authorities, group infection from Sarangjeil Church has already been confirmed until the third spread.

Among the places where the confirmed person was exposed, there are call centers, visiting nursing centers, nursing hospitals, daycare centers, and academies, and there is a high possibility that additional small-scale group infections will occur.

The area where the confirmed case has occurred is not limited to the metropolitan area, but is spreading all over the country.

Until the day of yesterday, 12 confirmed patients came from 5 cities and provinces including Daegu, Chungnam, Gyeongbuk, Daejeon, and Gangwon.

The uncooperative attitude of the congregation also rose to the cutting board.

In Pohang, after living in Sarangjeil Church since March, after coming down to Pohang on the 13th of this month, a confirmed person escaped after being confirmed and arrested after 4 hours.

Lee Jae-gap, professor of infectious medicine at Hallym University, said, "People who have not yet been tested may be positive, and a chain situation (infection) may occur to non-members." "The number of confirmed patients will not increase as much as at the time of Shincheonji Church. "The area is the metropolitan area, and the number of deaths is likely to increase due to the large number of older people, and the next 1-2 weeks will be important."

(Photo = Yonhap News)