South Korean health officials said they have found 457 coronavirus patients linked to a huge Seoul church led by a bitter critic of the country's president, driving an alarming surge of infections in the greater capital area. Kwon Jun Wook, director of South Korea's National Health Institute, said outbreaks at the Sarang Jeil Church and elsewhere have pushed the country into the biggest crisis yet since the emergence of the virus. Health officials have so far tested 2,500 of the church's 4,000 members, but they expressed concern that many of them are refusing to come forward for testing. Police are pursuing some 800 church members who have been out of contact. South Korea reported 246 new cases of the coronavirus on Tuesday, raising its total for the last five days to 959.-AP

Source: The Standard August 18, 2020 06:33 UTC