A researcher checks collected samples for COVID-19 tests at a laboratory in Incheon, west of Seoul, on Thursday. (Yonhap)
An enlisted soldier and a civilian official of an Army unit in the metropolitan city of Suwon tested positive for the new coronavirus, the defense ministry said Thursday.
They underwent COVID-19 tests after coming into close contact with another enlisted soldier confirmed to be infected with the virus earlier this week, according to the ministry.
The latest cases brought the total number of virus cases among the military population to 526.
Currently, 337 service members are in isolation in accordance with health authorities' guidelines, and the military has quarantined an additional 3,815 people under stricter antivirus schemes of its own as a preventive step, according to the ministry.
Nationwide, the country added 524 more COVID-19 cases, including 496 local infections, raising the total caseload to 70,728, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). (Yonhap)
