HOW THE "PATIENT 31" CAUSED A MASS SPREAD OF CORONAVIRUS INFECTION IN SOUTH KOREA

With only 30 registered cases of coronavirus infection between January 19 and February 18 in South Korea, the situation changed dramatically on February 18 after the 31st patient was registered. Patient 31 attended  church ceremonies at a religious community in Daegu and managed to cause a massive outbreak of the virus during just two visits to Shinhongji Church.

Additionally, it is a 61-year-old woman or popularly called “Patient 31” or “super-spreader” of the infection. After the country’s largest infected cluster appeared in the southeastern city of Daegu, the South Korean government has ordered testing of more than 200,000 Shinhongji churches across the country. Just a month later, a cluster at Shinhongji Church covered 5,080 confirmed cases of covid-19, or more than half of the total number of infected in South Korea.

It is not clear where patient 31 became infected with the virus, but in the days before her diagnosis, she traveled to crowded places in Daegu and the capital, Seoul. On February 6, she was involved in a minor car accident in Daegu and was later examined at an Oriental Medicine Hospital. While at the hospital, she twice attended the services of the Daegu branch at the Jesus Shinhongji Church.

It is not clear where patient 31 became infected with the virus, but in the days before her diagnosis, she traveled to crowded places in Daegu and the capital, Seoul. On February 6, she was involved in a minor car accident in Daegu and was later examined at an Oriental Medicine Hospital. While at the hospital, she twice attended the services of the Daegu branch at the Jesus Shinhongji Church.

Between those visits, on February 15, doctors at the hospital suggested she be tested for coronavirus because she had a high fever. Instead, she went to lunch with her friend. As her symptoms worsened, doctors once again advised her to be tested, so on February 17, she was finally tested, and the very next day, the health authorities officially announced it as the 31st confirmed case in the country. In just a few days, those numbers have risen, with hundreds of people in Shinhongji Church and surrounding areas positive for the virus.

The Korean Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) initially received a list of 9,300 people attending the two church services in Xinjiang, about 1,200 of whom complained of flu-like symptoms. Thousands of cases were later confirmed there.

Another smaller cluster appeared from a nearby hospital in Cheongdo, a district near Daegu. Authorities are still investigating links between the church in Daegu and the hospital’s funeral service, which was attended by a large number of church members from January 31 to February 2. If confirmed, this means that Patient 31 could be associated with both clusters.

At the beginning of March, the leader of the Shinhongji Church, founded in 1984, apologized. “I ask for forgiveness from the people,” he told a news conference. “I am very grateful to the government for its efforts. I’m also asking for forgiveness from the government. “In addition, the 88-year-old leader of the church, Lee Man Hee, is also the president of the organization called Heavenly Culture, World Peace, Restoration of Light – HWPL which is active in Northern Macedonia, Albania and Kosovo. HWPL says it is working to promote peace in the Balkans, in light of the regions troubled past.

Since 2016, the organization has organized numerous conferences and meetings with civil society organizations in the region. The church is currently facing several lawsuits and even a possible murder investigation.

Therefore, “only one person” is needed to get the situation out of control, if the recommendations of the health authorities are not followed. South Korea reacted quickly and managed to stop the spread of the virus, thanks to its massive coronavirus testing campaign, determining the route of infection and isolating those involved, but not all countries have the opportunity and resources to prevent the spread of the infection.