Credit: Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Images

A viral resurgence has scuttled plans to resume the school year.

South Korea has been praised recently for its efforts to contain the coronavirus, responding to the pandemic quickly and decisively with testing, tracing, and quarantine. As a result of this effort, some potentially risky businesses and institutions in the country, including parks, theaters, and schools, managed to reopen. Unfortunately, due to a new outbreak in the nation’s capitol of Seoul, reopening efforts have been cut short.

Over 500 schools, some of which only just reopened a few days ago, have been forced to shut their doors once again today. At least 838 schools that were planning to reopen in the near future had their plans delayed until the Seoul outbreak could be successfully contained. In both cases, the majority of students will return to remote classes. Students can still attend schools in special situations, but only two-thirds of the student body of high schools will be allowed into the building. Grade schools, kindergartens, and preschools are permitted an even lower turnout, allowing only a third of their student body in.

Credit: Kim Jun-beom/Yonhap via AP

Public businesses like parks and businesses will be closed for at least the next two weeks, and all government functions and gatherings in the metropolitan area have been cancelled or postponed. Citizens are once again being discouraged from going outside or holding events if possible.

One of the hot spots of this new outbreak is a logistics center in Bucheon. At least 100 new cases of COVID-19 are confirmed to have been contracted at this location. As of writing, 3,836 people out of 4,351 workers and visitors to the center have been tested for the virus. Anyone who has entered the logistics center on or after May 12 has been encouraged to self-isolate and get tested.