K-pop boy band NU’EST member Minhyun has tested positive for Covid-19 as South Korea recorded more than 300,000 new cases in one day.
“Minhyun experienced a mild fever and a sore throat and was tested negative on a self-test he took on Tuesday, March 8. However, he took a rapid antigen test as a proactive measure and was tested positive. He promptly took a PCR test and was confirmed with Covid-19 on the morning of Wednesday, March 9,” Pledis Entertainment, group’s agency, announced on March 9.
It added, “Minhyun is currently not exhibiting symptoms other than a mild fever and a sore throat and is administering self-treatment at home. There was no contact between Minhyun and other NU'EST members. Therefore, Minhyun will adjust his schedule and focus on the treatment for a while. We will provide you with updates on his activity resumption.”
At least 201 Korean celebrities, mostly K-pop idols, have tested positive for Covid-19 since Jan. 19.
South Korea is tallying record daily cases due to the highly contagious Omicron variant. The country recorded 342,446 new Covid-19 cases on March 9, the highest daily tally since the pandemic started in 2020.
The tally brought the total confirmed cases to 5.21 million, the first time that South Korea breached the 5 million mark. A total of 9,440 persons have died in South Korea due to Covid-19.
Meanwhile, Pledis Entertainment also announced that “Seventeen member Hoshi has made a full recovery from COVID-19 and his quarantine has concluded as of today .”
“Hoshi has been administering self-treatment at home as per health authority guidelines and has not shown any extraordinary symptoms. As his quarantine has concluded, he can resume his activities starting from today,” the agency said.
Hoshi tested positive for Covid-19 on March 3 and recovered in seven days based on the isolation period set by health authorities.
Nine of the 13 members of Seventeen have tested positive for Covid-19 in nearly a month from Feb. 12 to March 8.
Seventeen’s Joshua and Jun were diagnosed with Covid-19 on March 8. The 8 tested positive on March 7.
DK, Seungkwan and S.Coups were diagnosed with Covid-19 on March 5. Vernon was confirmed to have Covid-19 on Feb. 25 and fully recovered on March 3. Wonwoo tested positive for Covid-19 on Feb. 12 and recovered on Feb. 18.