New COVID-19 cases over 50,000 for 5th day
People wait in line to undergo a COVID-19 test at a temporary testing site set up at City Hall Plaza in Seoul, Feb. 10. Reuters-Yonhap
Daily COVID-19 cases exceeded 50,000 for the fifth day in a Sunday as the health authorities brace for a further spike amid the rapid spread of the highly transmissible Omicron variant nationwide.
The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) reported 54,619 new infections, including 54,513 local ones, raising the overall total to 1,405,246.
The latest figure marked the fifth day in a row that daily infections have exceeded 50,000, although it was below the record high of 56,428 reported the previous day.
The health authorities have warned that daily new cases could hit 170,000 by around the end of the month. The National Institute of Mathematical Sciences, a state-run think tank, estimated the figure could even soar as high as 360,000 by early next month.
The death toll from COVID-19 came to 7,102, up 21 from Saturday for a fatality rate of 0.51 percent, the KDCA said. (Yonhap)