Photologue @theuostimes7
The emergence of the new COVID-19 variant named Omicron has alarmed the world again, especially the countries with the “living with COVID-19” scheme. The first case of Omicron variant infection in South Korea was the couple who were fully vaccinated in October, but tested positive for the COVID-19 right after their arrival from Nigeria in November. In succession, a few more people have been confirmed to be infected with Omicron. Recently, three students from Seoul National University, Kyunghee University, and Hankuk University of Foreign Studies turned out to be another Omicron-infected people as well. Therefore, most of the classes of the three universities have decided to switch to non-face-to-face classes. The University of Seoul (UOS) is not an exception; there is no Omicron-infected student yet, but numerous professors have decided to switch their classes to non-face-to-face and cancel their plans of taking final exams face-to-face to prevent the spread of the virus. Apparently, regardless of vaccination, it is possible to get infected with either COVID-19 or the variant. As a result, the Korean government has suspended the “living with COVID-19” scheme since December 6. Soon it is the end of the year, and many people are expected to have gatherings or parties for various reasons. However, the pandemic has clearly not ended yet, meaning that people still need to follow the quarantine measures as much as possible. The UOS Times hopes readers to be safe from the virus by wearing masks properly, keeping their hands clean, and refraining from going to places where many people gather.