USFK reports that 13 service members who arrived in South Korea from the U.S. have tested positive for COVID-19 and are now in isolation at Camp Humphreys.
Of those, eight arrived via government chartered planes at Osan Air Base while another five arrived on commercial flights at Incheon International Airport between Oct. 9 and Oct. 22.
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USFK requires all service members arriving in South Korea to take a COVID-19 test before quarantining for at least 14 days. After that period expires, service members must take a second COVID-19 test to confirm they don’t have the virus before they exit quarantine — or will remain isolated if they test positive.
Five service members initially tested positive for COVID-19, and the other eight tested positive on the second test.
USFK has reported more than two dozen COVID-19 cases this month from incoming service members. However, USFK has said that the numbers represent a small sliver of its service members.
“Despite the recent confirmed cases, USFK remains at a high level of readiness with less than 1% of its active duty service members currently confirmed positive with COVID-19,” USFK said in a news release.
A USFK soldier stationed at Camp Carroll was the first U.S. service member to test positive for COVID-19 back in February. The 23-year-old soldier was declared virus-free after 49 days in isolation in April.
As of Oct. 23, the Pentagon has reported more than 52,300 COVID-19 cases among military personnel, more than 12,300 cases among DoD civilians, more than 7,500 cases among dependents, and more than 5,000 cases among contractors. There have been a total of eight deaths among military personnel.
