A South Korean employee of US Forces Korea has tested positive for the new coronavirus, bringing the total number of USFK-related infection cases to seven, the military said Friday.

The seventh patient is now in isolation at her off-base residence in the central city of Cheonan, according to USFK.

"KCDC and USFK health professionals are actively conducting contact tracing to determine whether anyone else may have been exposed," it said. KCDC stands for the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

USFK remains on "high" risk level peninsula-wide and is implementing all appropriate control measures to help mitigate the spread of the virus to protect the force, it added.

As of midnight, South Korea had reported 6,284 virus patients, including 42 deaths. (Yonhap)