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July 13, 2009
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The second half of the first international choir competition slated to be held for four days starting today at local cities in South Gyeongsang has been canceled after A(H1N1) influenza infected more than a dozen foreign competitors and a Korean volunteer worker participating in the contest. The South Gyeongsang Provincial Government said on Saturday that the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed 13 Indonesians and one Korean volunteer worker participating in World Choir Championship Korea 2009, have contracted the new virus. Award and closing ceremonies for the first half that were scheduled on Saturday were also canceled. The first half of the competition ran for four days from Wednesday. Earlier on Friday, the provincial office announced that it had consulted with officials from Germany-based Interkultur Foundation, a co-organizer of the event, regarding the confirmed flu cases and decided to call off the remaining scheduled contest. South Gyeongsang Institute of Health and Environment learned on Friday that flu-infected members tested positive for type-A influenza after they reported severe coughs and high fevers the day before. The institute had requested the KCDC conduct a thorough examination of those “presumed patients” on Friday. Indonesia sent three choir teams with 140 members to the competition. No symptoms of the virus were detected when they were being quarantined at a Gimhae International Airport on Tuesday and Wednesday. The provincial office has isolated flu-infected patients in a local hospital and is trying to track down other people who had physical contact with them. The province had invested 88 billion won ($68.2 million) to hold the event and invited a total of 2,591 competitors representing 29 different countries, including Korea. During the first half of the contest, 1,559 contestants from 17 different countries had already competed. Contestants expected to compete in the second half did not come to South Korea. Meanwhile, the KCDC confirmed for the first time on Friday that one woman, who had never gone abroad or had physical contact with a patient infected with the new influenza, was infected with the flu. In addition, one and six confirmed cases of A(H1N1) flu in Bundang, Gyeonggi, and Daegu, respectively, have been reported. By Lee Ki-won, Lee Min-yong [smartpower@joongang.co.kr] |
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