Dödligt virus från Kina orsakar panik (SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19)

After a woman with the coronavirus visited a Starbucks cafe north of Seoul this month, more than two dozen patrons tested positive days later. But the four face mask-wearing employees escaped infection.
The Aug. 8 outbreak in the South Korean city of Paju is another example of how rapidly the SARS-CoV-2 virus can spread in confined, indoor spaces -- as well as ways to minimize transmission. With health authorities around the world still debating the evidence around face masks, the 27-person cluster linked to the air-conditioned coffee outlet adds more support for their mandatory use to help limit the spread of the Covid-19-causing virus.
“This speaks volumes about the role masks can play,” said Ma Sang Hyuk, a pediatric infectious diseases physician at Changwon Fatima Hospital in South Korea. “Masks may not provide 100% protection, but there’s nothing out there that’s as effective.”

Some 66 Covid-19 cases in South Korea are linked to a cluster at a Starbucks store in Paju city, the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) said on Tuesday.
Health officials said the cases mainly occurred among customers who did not wear face masks inside the café, adding the location was poorly ventilated.
Among the 66 infections, 25 were visitors to the café, 37 were linked contacts, while four others were related to the initial patient, the KCDC said in a statement.
“One certain fact seems to be that the core of anti-virus measures for people working at cafés or restaurants is wearing face masks. Employees are at the highest risk for staying the longest time at [infected] locations but no infection case has been reported among employees who wore masks,” said Kwon Joon-wook, an official at the KCDC.
On August 20, the KCDC said that the patron who authorities identified as the "first identified patient" stayed for two hours, and was sitting and talking without wearing a mask.