An entire Ukrainian town had to be sealed off after dozens of people including priests were infected with COVID-19 at a famous monastery

• An entire Ukrainian town had to be sealed off after dozens of people, including priests, were infected with COVID-19 at a famous monastery.
• The town of Pochayiv in western Ukraine is known for the Pochayiv Lavra, one of the largest Orthodox monasteries in Eastern Europe. Thousands of pilgrims visit the site during Easter Holy Week each year.
• According to the Kyiv Post, the town was shut down on April 21 after more than 90 people contracted COVID-19 at the monastery.
• Places of worship around the world have closed their doors during the pandemic to prevent the spread of disease.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Ukrainian authorities have sealed off the entire town of Pochayiv in the Ternopil Oblast province of Ukraine after dozens of people, including priests at an Orthodox monastery, contracted COVID-19.

The town is known for the Pochayiv Lavra, one of the largest Orthodox monasteries in Eastern Europe. The town has a population of about 8,000 people, and thousands of Orthodox Christian pilgrims visit the 500-year-old holy site each year during the Easter Holy Week. Orthodox Easter was on April 19.

According to the Kyiv Post, the town was shut down on April 21 after more than 90 people contracted COVID-19 at the monastery. Ukrainian officials said numerous people in the town failed to comply with social distancing measures in place during Easter services.

Several priests who visited Pochayiv Lavra tested positive for the disease, according to the BBC. Four priests who live in the town also tested positive for coronavirus.

According to Ukrainian news agency Ukranews, a monk at the monastery died from COVID-19 on April 14.

The BBC said that police blocked routes in and out of Pochayiv on Tuesday and have since closed the monastery.

Another Orthodox monastery in Ukraine, the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra, was shut down earlier this month after several worshippers tested positive for COVID-19.

As of Wednesday evening, Ukraine has recorded 6,592 coronavirus cases and 174 deaths. The country's lockdown measures have been extended to May 11.

Places of worship around the world have closed their doors during the pandemic to prevent the spread of disease.

New York's first major outbreak in New Rochelle is believed to have spread through an attorney who attended services at a local synagogue, where a number of worshippers later tested positive.

The Shincheonji Church of Jesus in South Korea was linked to several major clusters of disease in the country after a number of its parishioners tested positive.

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