Dozens of members of a South Korean church are infected with coronavirus after not wiping saltwater spray bottle they put inside their mouths in bid to PROTECT themselves
- Dozens of South Korean worshippers were sprayed with saltwater on March 8
- At least 46 people, including the pastor and his wife, test positive for Covid-19
- Parishioners were sprayed at River of Grace Community Church in Seongnam
- Church pastor, named only as Kim, vows to retire and says he’s ‘deeply sorry’
- Coronavirus symptoms: what are they and should you see a doctor?
A South Korean church has been struck down with coronavirus, including its own pastor and his wife.
At least 46 people have been infected with the disease after an official failed to wipe a saltwater spray bottle they sprayed inside their mouths to protect them.
Six people, including the pastor of River of Grace Community Church in Seongnam, near Seoul, initially tested positive following the gathering on March 8.
On Monday the city’s government revealed 40 more people from the church had developed coronavirus.
More than 40 people have tested positive for coronavirus after River of Grace Community Church in Seongnam, South Korea, didn’t clean a bottle it used to spray saltwater into its followers mouths in the hope of protecting them from the fatal disease
The church has around 135 followers, including 90 who attended the service.
All 135 followers were tested.
The church’s pastor, identified only as Kim, apologized for the mass infection of his church members.
‘I feel deeply sorry about what has happened. I will take all the blame and responsibility,’ Kim told Yonhap News Agency, indicating his intention to retire after the ongoing crisis is over.
This is the second largest cluster of infections in the area around South Korea’s capital, after a Seoul insurance call centre reporter 129 infections.
South Korea on Monday reported 74 new cases of the coronavirus to total 8,236, marking the second consecutive day the number of new cases was below 100.
Neighbors say around 100 followers used to pack the church’s chapel of about 100 square meters on the third floor every Sunday, adding the place was also frequented by 20 to 30 followers on weekdays.
The area around Grace River Church in Seongnam, South Korea, was disinfected on Monday after city officials revealed at least 46 people had caught coronavirus during a gathering at the church on March 8
‘All large-scale churches in Seongnam have suspended physical worship services, but the River of Grace Community Church had pushed ahead with its Sunday gathering for two weeks, despite protests from neighbors,’ a Seongnam resident said.
Footage of a surveillance camera, released by Seongnam province, showed church officials spraying salt water into the mouths of all church members before attending the March 1 and 8 services, apparently for disinfection purposes.
‘If the spray was repeatedly used for different people without disinfection, it could have increased the number of infections,’ a provincial official said.