A civilian Army worker tested positive for the new coronavirus Wednesday, forcing hundreds of troops at his unit into quarantine, including some participating in an ongoing joint exercise with the United States, officials said.

The summertime exercise, however, is under way as planned, as those essential for the training do not appear to have been affected, they added.

The worker affiliated with the Army's First Corps in the city of Goyang, north of Seoul, tested positive following the infection of his wife. The Army unit is taking part in the Combined Command Post Training (CCPT), which began on Aug. 18 to run until Friday, according to the officials.

"Hundreds of the corps' service personnel have been in isolation at the barracks and are taking COVID-19 tests," a ministry official said. "The employee is not a direct member of the exercise, and his possible contact with key exercise members appears to have been limited."

This year's summertime training began two days behind schedule after a South Korean Army officer who was supposed to take part in the exercise tested positive for the coronavirus.

Due to the pandemic, Seoul and Washington decided to stage the exercise in a scaled-back manner.

South Korea has seen a surge in fresh infections since mid-August, mostly in Seoul and the surrounding metropolitan area. On Wednesday, it reported 320 more patients, bringing the total caseload to 18,265, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC). (Yonhap)