Marine officer tests positive for new coronavirus after overseas work-related trip

A Marine Corps officer has tested positive for the new coronavirus after returning from a recent trip to Thailand, the defense ministry said Monday.

The officer was confirmed to have been infected with COVID-19 on Sunday upon arrival at Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, following a work-related trip to the Southeast Asian nation, according to the ministry.

The latest case raised the total number of infections reported among the military population to 166.

Currently, 120 service members are in isolation in accordance with the health authorities' guidelines, and the military has quarantined an additional 1,014 people under stricter anti-virus schemes of its own as a preventive step.

Nationwide, the country added 126 more COVID-19 cases, including 99 local infections, raising the total caseload to 27,553, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). (Yonhap)