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| People wait in line for a COVID-19 test at a public health center in southern Seoul, March 15. Korea's daily COVID-19 cases surpassed 300,000 for four straight days Monday. Yonhap |
Korea's new daily COVID-19 infections stayed above 300,000 for the fourth straight day Monday as the country battles through its worst virus wave yet, sparked by the highly transmissible Omicron variant.
The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) reported 362,338 new cases, mostly locally transmitted ones, raising the total caseload to 7,228,550.
The tally marks the second-highest daily count after the all-time high of 383,664 reported Friday. It's also a big jump from the previous day's 309,790. The daily counts tend to fall Sunday due to fewer tests on the weekend before rising sharply toward the end of the week.
The death toll hit a record high of 293, up 93 from Monday, pushing the total to 10,888 for a fatality rate of 0.15 percent.
The number of critically ill patients also reached an all-time high of 1,196, up 38 from the previous day.
Korea has seen a spike in its COVID-19 caseload since the beginning of the year, with the numbers surging from four digits to six digits in about three weeks last month.
The focus now in the fight against the coronavirus has been about how to bring back everyday life as much as possible while maintaining steps to rein in the virus surge.
The government announced children aged between 5 and 11 will be able to receive vaccinations starting March 31. It has already allowed uninfected students and school staff members to attend school in person even if family members who live with them have tested positive for the coronavirus.
The health authorities said they would begin to consider readjusting social distancing measures that currently limit business hours till 11 p.m. and private gatherings of up to six people, as those measures are due to end this week. (Yonhap)
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