South Korea COVID-19 clusters rise after rules relaxed

June 16 (UPI) -- South Korea is struggling to contain what may be a "next wave" of coronavirus infections, following a government decision to loosen social distancing restrictions in late April.

The latest infection clusters are occurring in several places, including day care centers, schools, hospitals and churches. The infections are rapidly spreading in the greater Seoul metropolitan area, which includes Gyeonggi Province, Yonhap reported Tuesday.

South Korea's confirmed cases are lower than many countries, including neighbors China and Japan. The country has more infections than Taiwan, New Zealand or Australia, however.

According to Gyeonggi provincial authorities, recent cases have involved the deadly virus spreading from schoolteachers to students, as the country's school-aged children return to classrooms.

In Icheon, a town in the province, a 28-year-old schoolteacher was confirmed for the virus. A total of 1,130 students are being tested for COVID-19, authorities said.

A cluster in the satellite city of Bucheon occurred at a cultural center, where a 40-year-old day care director tested positive for the virus. People the patient came in contact with, including 24 teachers and 66 children, as well as their families, are being tested, according to Yonhap.

Infections connected to a cluster at Richway, a Seoul-based health product provider that hires door-to-door vendors, continue to be reported in various parts of the greater Seoul area. Three patients connected to Richway were identified on Monday, and an additional three people were confirmed on Tuesday, bringing the total number of related cases to 54, according to reports.

South Korea's "second wave" of infections occurred with a cluster at Seoul nightclubs. The mean reproduction number of COVID-19 in Korea was greater than 1 after mid-May, indicating the infection was spreading exponentially after May 23, according to local newspaper Kukmin Ilbo on Tuesday.

The director of the National Institute of Health warned Tuesday the virus can "spread at any time."