GOYANG, South Korea — A second case of foot-and-mouth disease has been confirmed in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, just eight days after the initial outbreak, raising concerns about spread in the densely populated livestock area.
The latest case was detected at a farm located within 500 meters of the first infected site, according to the Goyang city government on Monday.
Authorities received a report Sunday at 9:10 a.m. of suspected symptoms including drooling and loss of appetite in calves at a local Korean beef cattle farm. The Gyeonggi Province Animal Health Laboratory immediately conducted tests and confirmed a positive result at 11 p.m. the same day.
The affected farm raises 123 Korean beef cattle and had completed foot-and-mouth disease vaccinations on Dec. 21, yet still tested positive. Quarantine authorities plan to collect samples from all cattle at the farm and conduct detailed examinations following Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs guidelines. Confirmed positive animals will be culled.
Within a 3-kilometer radius of the first outbreak site, there are 26 livestock farms with 5,463 animals. Seven Korean beef cattle farms housing 611 animals are concentrated within 500 meters, elevating the risk of farm-to-farm transmission, officials said.
The city has installed additional movement control checkpoints and deployed dedicated disinfection vehicles. Authorities are also strengthening quarantine measures including quickite application.
Vaccination Rate Reaches 96%
The city established a 24-hour Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters on Dec. 20, headed by the mayor, with seven divisions including a general situation team, quarantine response team, and disaster support team. Operations will continue until the severe crisis alert level is lifted.
Emergency mass vaccinations began Dec. 20. As of Monday, 13,840 of 14,408 livestock across 187 farms in Goyang have been vaccinated, achieving a 96% vaccination rate. For cattle specifically, 7,978 of 8,142 animals have been vaccinated, reaching 98%.
A central disinfection facility at the Goyang Agricultural Technology Center is conducting vehicle disinfection and verification. Seventeen disinfection vehicles and one quarantine drone are deployed daily. Surveillance activities covering all 187 farms are being conducted in cooperation with military units, livestock cooperatives, agricultural cooperatives, and public health centers.
"Although we have achieved a 96% vaccination rate, the risk of spread remains high due to the concentration of livestock farms in the area," a Goyang city official said. "We will concentrate all quarantine capabilities through civilian, government, and military cooperation to block further spread."