About 190 South Koreans returned from Uzbekistan on a special flight on Sunday after having been grounded there due to the border closure of the Central Asian country amid the coronavirus outbreak.

According to the South Korean Embassy in Uzbekistan, a flight carrying 192 South Koreans and about 50 foreigners arrived at Incheon International Airport at around 3:45 p.m. Sunday.

The passengers include Choi Jae-wook, a South Korean medical college professor, who provided consultations to the country on COVID-19 measures for the past four weeks. 

Uzbekistan has banned international flights since March to contain the spread of the virus, but approved the special flight to allow Choi to return home in appreciation of his services. 

The South Koreans from Uzbekistan were tested for the COVID-19 virus and entered into a two-week self-quarantine.