|
View larger picture |
|
| ▲ On the 24th, 127 corona19 confirmed cases occurred in connection with an unauthorized international school operated by the Protestant-related IM Mission in Jung-gu, Daejeon. | |
| Ⓒ Jang Jae-wan |
See related photos |
At Daejeon IEM International School, where 127 corona19 confirmed cases occurred on the 24th, it was confirmed that up to 20 people lived together in one room, and shared shower rooms and toilets. In addition, it turned out that even partitions were not installed in the restaurant.
On the morning of the 25th, Daejeon Mayor Hur Tae-jung held an online briefing on the’IEM International School Group Infection’ and said, “A group infection occurred yesterday in an unauthorized school operated by a parent missionary in Daeheung-dong, Jung-gu,” We apologize for causing concern. However, no additional confirmed cases occurred overnight,” he said.
According to Mayor Heo’s announcement, the headquarters of IM Mission, which is the operator of this school, is located in Jung-gu, Daejeon, and there are 23 schools in Daejeon, including IEM, and TCS and CAS in each region. The city of Daejeon received contact information from the representatives of each region for 23 facilities last night from the mission and submitted it to the Central Defense Response Headquarters, and additional inspections and measures are scheduled for each city and province today.
Daejeon IEM International School has 120 students and 38 faculty members with a total of 158 people. The previous day, 146 people in the facility were tested for Corona 19 in three rounds, and as a result, 125 positive, 18 negative, and 3 undecided. The other two were confirmed earlier in Suncheon and Pohang respectively. Of the 12 others, 11 will be tested in other regions and one in Daejeon.
In Daejeon, 125 confirmed patients were transferred to the Asan Life Treatment Center for mild or no symptoms depending on the symptoms, and confirmed patients with symptoms are expected to be hospitalized at a hospital dedicated to infectious diseases in Daejeon. In addition, 18 negative judges will be self-contained after training on self-isolation rules, and the facility will be closed for three weeks (until February 14) after quarantine and disinfection.
Daejeon City said that the reason why such a large-scale group infection occurred was because the facility lived on board.
The school’s students and some faculty members lived together in a building with 1 basement level and 5 floors above ground, and on the 3rd-5th floors where boarding facilities were located, some shared shower facilities and toilets. In particular, it turned out that 7 to 20 people lived together per room in the dormitory, and partitions were not installed in the basement restaurant.
Mayor Heo said that a large number of people lived in groups under the conditions of dense, closed, and closely spaced conditions, which led to the worst situation.
Additional investigations are required for the first infection route, and the Central Defense Countermeasure Headquarters, the National Police Agency, and a joint investigation team of cities and districts are scheduled to conduct an investigation on the spot.
According to the representative’s statement, enrolled students admitted on the 4th and freshmen from the 11th to 15th, and after admitted, they have lived in quarantine without outsiders entering. Therefore, Mayor Huh said that the investigation will be conducted with the possibility that an asymptomatic infected person was admitted at this time and spread to others while living in quarantine, and the possibility that the infection was spread by five commuters including school staff.
However, Mayor Heo concluded that concerns about large-scale additional infections were low, as in the recent BTJ National Center case. This is because BTJ International School is known to be operated independently of each other rather than exchanges with similar schools in other regions of the country, while BTJ International School gathered in one local facility to receive education and then scattered across the country.
Nevertheless, despite the fact that the first symptoms occurred on the 12th, Mayor Heo strongly expressed regret that the facility did not take appropriate measures, such as preemptive tests.
|
View larger picture |
|
| ▲ On the 24th, 127 corona19 confirmed cases occurred in connection with an unauthorized international school operated by the Protestant-related IM Mission in Jung-gu, Daejeon. | |
| Ⓒ Jang Jae-wan |
See related photos |
Regarding the’violation of quarantine rules’, this school is operated by a religious facility, so Daejeon City and Jung-gu have been constantly checking the compliance of the quarantine rules from July to January only in the chapel on the second floor. The Jung-gu Office said that there were some on-site guidance to prevent the facility from running a camp.
However, it has additionally investigated whether to comply with quarantine rules such as face-to-face worship and distancing when using facilities, and announced that it will take measures in accordance with the law in case of violation.
In addition, Mayor Heo said that these unauthorized schools are not recognized as schools and are in the blind spot of the law because they are not academies.
Mayor Heo added, “Once again, I apologize to the citizens regarding the group infection that has occurred in our area. We will do our best to prevent further spread to the local community.”