New virus cases in double digits for 2nd day
Incheon Pentaport Rock Festival is held for online viewers without audience at Songdo Moonlight Festival Park in the city's Yeonsu Distirct, Oct. 16. Courtesy of Pentaport Rock Festival
New COVID-19 infections here rose by double digits for Friday, the second straight day, but the health authorities remain on alert over an increase in sporadic infection clusters amid eased social distancing regulations.
The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) reported Saturday that it had detected 73 more coronavirus cases for the previous day, including 62 domestic infections, raising the total caseload to 25,108.
This marked a rise from the 47 reported for Thursday ― the first time it dropped below 50 since Sept. 29 ― but a decline from 110 cases the day before, when more than 50 reported cases were tied to an elderly care facility in Busan.
The country has reported infection clusters tied to a nursing home, a hospital and other facilities following the latest Chuseok holiday in early October. At least 17 cases have been traced to a rehabilitation hospital south of Seoul.
On Monday, the country relaxed its tougher coronavirus restrictions by one notch to Level 1 social distancing measures in its three-tier scheme as new virus cases slowed down after a resurgence.
Daily infections had been in the triple digits for more than a month since Aug. 14. New virus cases have largely slowed on the back of weeks-long stricter curbs put in place in late August.
Busan's Mandeok area is quiet Oct. 16 after an elderly care facility, public bathhouse and restaurant saw COVID-19 infections clusters earlier this week. Yonhap
The KDCA called on people not to loosen their guard as an infection flare-up could happen at any time with sporadic outbreaks.
Of the newly identified local infections, 17 were reported in Seoul, 32 in the surrounding Gyeonggi Province, and one in Incheon, west of Seoul.
Other municipalities reported new cases, with the country's largest port city of Busan adding six and Gangwon Province reporting three.
The country, meanwhile, added 11 imported cases, increasing the total to 3,487. Three came from Poland, followed by two from India and another two from Russia.
The KDCA reported two additional deaths, raising the toll to 443 with a fatality rate of 1.76 percent.
The number of seriously or critically ill COVID-19 patients came to 84 as of midnight, down one from the previous day.
The total number of people released from quarantine after making a recovery stood at 23,258, up 78 from the previous day.
The country has carried out 2,468,527 coronavirus tests since Jan. 3. (Yonhap)