Daily new infections fall below 50 ahead of Chuseok
Passengers aboard a KTX train at Seoul Station in the capital, Tuesday,?ahead of the Chuseok long weekend, sit only in window seats to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Korea Times photo by Choi Won-suk
'Holiday should not serve as catalyst for massive outbreaks'
By Jun Ji-hye
Korea's daily number of new COVID-19 infections has fallen below 50 for the first time since mid-August when the rate began to worsen, the health authorities said Tuesday.
But the government is staying vigilant over the possibility of outbreaks emerging during the five-day Chuseok holiday that starts today, as many people are expected to travel across the country to visit their hometowns and spend time with family members, or go on trips utilizing the long weekend.
The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) reported 38 new cases for Monday, including 23 locally transmitted infections, raising the total caseload to 23,699.
One more patient died from the virus, increasing the death toll to 407.
Daily new infections have stayed in double digits for the fourth straight day amid a decreasing trend in the number of cases.
The authorities stressed that the Chuseok holiday must not serve as a catalyst for massive outbreaks, raising concerns that many travelers are still expected to use airports nationwide during the holiday period.
“The number of passengers at 14 airports across the nation is expected to reach 963,000 during Chuseok, about 75 percent of the number tallied last year,” Second Vice Health Minister Kang Do-tae said during a government meeting on COVID-19 responses. “All of us should make every effort to prevent the holiday from serving as a catalyst for the nationwide spread of the coronavirus.”
The authorities also renewed warnings against illegal anti-government rallies planned by some conservative groups on the Oct. 3 National Foundation Day, saying such rallies will threaten the safety of the people amid the public health crisis.
“The government will fully exercise its authority as permitted by law to completely block illegal rallies,” Kang said.
Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said earlier the administration will enforce a zero-tolerance policy in response to illegal rallies by arresting protesters at the scene and suspending the licenses of driver who participate in in-car protests.
The government designated the two weeks starting Monday through Oct. 11 as a “special period” for strong nationwide anti-virus efforts, during which time it will maintain Level 2 social distancing measures that ban indoor meetings involving 50 people or more and outdoor meetings of 100 or more.
Highway toll fees that have been waived for Chuseok since 2017 will be collected this year in order to reduce highway congestion, the government said, noting that highway rest stops will only serve takeaway customers under its special measures.