The South Korean government will conduct rapid antigen tests for correctional facility employees on a weekly basis in a bid to prevent further spread of COVID-19 at a detention center in eastern Seoul.

This comes after one-thousand-118 people in connection to the detention center have tested positive since the first case was reported on November 27 last year.

The Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters also said on Wednesday that inmates will be provided with one protective mask on a daily basis.

Tests for employees and inmates at eleven correctional facilities were completed on Tuesday, and all of them tested negative. Tests will be conducted at an additional 41 facilities.

Should a patient be confirmed at a high-capacity center, like the one in eastern Seoul, those who did not come into contact will be transferred to a facility in the southeastern city of Daegu to prevent an infection cluster.