▲ Medical workers walk in front of the entrance of Dongbu Detention Center in Seoul on Jan. 14, 2021. (Yonhap)

prisons-coronavirus

No new COVID-19 cases reported at correctional facilities for 2nd day

SEOUL, Jan. 14 (Yonhap) -- Correctional facilities in South Korea reported no new coronavirus cases on Thursday for the second day in a row, after an alarming surge in a cluster infection at a Seoul prison.

A total of 1,249 COVID-19 cases linked to prisons across the country had been reported as of Thursday, unchanged from Tuesday, the Ministry of Justice said.

The government has announced a set of enhanced COVID-19 measures for prisons following the outbreak at the Seoul detention center that has emerged as a hotbed of infections.

Under the new policy, new inmates will be required to undergo three weeks of isolation before entering correctional facilities.

The Dongbu Detention Center has reported 1,193 COVID-19 cases since the first case on Nov. 27.

The Dongbu center has been relocating inmates to other regions to ease overcrowding and reduce infection risk.

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