The status of COVID-19 infection of YCAM employees

On November 5, the infection of three employees of the Yamaguchi Center for Arts and Media [YCAM] with COVID-19 has been confirmed (details will be provided at a later date).

The behavior of the three employees prior to the onset of their infection has been traced in cooperation with the Yamaguchi Prefectural Institute of Public Health and Environment. It has been confirmed that each of them has been working in a part of the Center that is not accessible to regular visitors, and that no regular visitor is included in the list of close contacts as defined by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.

On the instruction of the aforementioned Institute of Public Health and Environment, a mass testing has been carried out, during which all employees have taken at least one PCR test by November 6. As of November 8, none of the tests have been positive other than those of the initial three employees. Upon consultation with the Institute of Public Health and Environment and Yamaguchi City, it was decided that YCAM will be closed until November 17.
All facilities and equipment inside YCAM that have been used by the employees that tested positive have been completely disinfected.

Situation prior and up to infection (added December 2)

According to investigations by the Yamaguchi Prefectural Institute of Public Health and Environment and YCAM, two of the four infected employees visited a restaurant in the Yuda Onsen area, at which a cluster of infections had occurred, on October 30. Therefore, the two employees have been listed as close contacts of a male employee of the restaurant who had previously tested positive for COVID-19. As the other two infected YCAM employees are again close contacts of these two, it is likely that they have been infected at their workplace.