Pyeongtaek City Implements Quarantine Measures at Pyeongtaek Port to Block Novel Coronavirus

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Seo Dong-young] Pyeongtaek City, where South Korea's fourth confirmed case of the novel coronavirus originating in Wuhan, China (Wuhan pneumonia) was reported, has begun quarantine operations at the Pyeongtaek Port International Passenger Terminal, which sees a large number of Chinese arrivals.

Currently, five international passenger ships operate 14 round trips per week at Pyeongtaek Port on five routes to Chinese ports including Weihai and Yantai. An average of approximately 1,000 travelers and merchants enter the country daily.

Accordingly, the city held an emergency task force meeting on the 28th with the Pyeongtaek Regional Maritime and Fisheries Administration and shipping companies to discuss countermeasures. Among the shipping companies, Lianyun Port and Ilcho International Ferry will suspend operations until mid-February. Dae Ryong Shipping, Kyeongdong Ferry, and Yantai Ferry decided to operate cargo only, excluding passengers, from the 30th onward for the time being. Each shipping company plans to monitor the spread trends over the next one to two weeks and then review the possibility of extending suspension operations.

The city will strengthen quarantine procedures for arrivals at Pyeongtaek Port in cooperation with the Incheon Quarantine Station Pyeongtaek Branch. Officials will board incoming vessels to conduct individual temperature checks and collect health questionnaires aboard ship, provide masks, and carry out hand disinfection. Thermal imaging cameras will be installed outside both the immigration inspection area and the arrival hall to conduct double screening of incoming passengers.

As a result of fever surveillance and other checks conducted on 116 passengers aboard Dae Ryong Shipping's Ka Ferry that arrived at the port on the morning of the 28th, no abnormalities were detected. Among them, 90 Chinese passengers departed in full at 3 p.m. on the 28th without lodging overnight.

Monthly disinfection of the passenger terminal, previously conducted once a month, has been strengthened to three times per week through professional companies. The city plans to work in active cooperation with shipping companies, dock operators, port workers' unions, and CIQ agencies through LED display announcements and broadcast guidance on infectious disease prevention rules, placement of masks and hand sanitizers, and other continuous measures to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus.

The city emphasized that those who develop suspected symptoms of novel coronavirus infection within 14 days after visiting China should wear a mask, minimize contact with others, and report to the Disease Control and Prevention Center's Call Center (1339) or the relevant health center (Pyeongtaek Health Center 031-8024-4331, Songtan Health Center 031-8024-7280~3) before visiting a medical facility.