On May 9, reports started emerging of cases spiking in the South Korean capital of Seoul.

It immediately raised alarm; South Korea had just started loosening restrictions and opening up some businesses after largely regaining control of the outbreak that had peaked in February and March.

Authorities quickly identified the cases as concentrated in Itaewon, the entertainment district popular for bars and nightclubs. A 29-year-old man infected with Covid-19 had visited several clubs, where he transmitted the virus to dozens more people.

There have now been 219 cases linked to the nightclub cluster, Kwon Jun-wook, deputy director of Korea’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said on Saturday.

The KCDC said yesterday that the man had infected 95 people in Itaewon, who then spread the virus further.

The numbers: South Korea now has 11,165 cases nationwide and 266 deaths, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.