A Korean Air flight attendant tested positive for the novel coronavirus, according to Korea CDC on Tuesday, Seoul time.
The person was determined infected after serving on their Incheon-LAX route between February 19 and 20.
The cabin crewmember had also worked the Incheon-Tel Aviv route and may have contracted the virus from South Korean churchgoers who went on a pilgrimage to Israel. Of those 39 pilgrims, 30 have been found infected with CovID-19.
She is now under the care of South Korean health authorities and is receiving treatment.
Flight attendants of Korean Air are known to hang out in Ktown, as well the neighboring areas of Larchmont, Windsor Square, Hancock Park, Miracle Mile, Downtown, Hollywood and Beverly Hills.
Koreatown itself is home to a community of Korean retirees and senior citizens who find the three-square-mile area easier to navigate via DASH bus than the Orange County suburbs where their offspring live.
According to data released by Korea CDC, the virus afflicts most severely those above the age of fifty, while children do not show any symptoms despite carrying the virus.
South Korea now has a total of 977 confirmed cases of COVid-19 with 11 deaths directly attributed to the virus. Cause of death is acute respiratory failure from pneumonia.
As of Tuesday, the United States has recorded 57 cases and no deaths.
UPDATE: Late in the week, the South Korean consulate in Los Angeles released a statement denying that the flight attendant had been to any store or restaurant in Koreatown. Her actual itinerary may be revealed at a later date. Officials hint that she did not go out that much during her very brief stay in L.A. earlier this month.