New virus cases hit record high of 950

An employee disinfects handles on a subway train at a subway station in Seoul, Dec. 10, as a precaution against the coronavirus. AP

The daily number of new COVID-19 infections here crossed the 900-mark for Friday, reaching a record high nearly 11 months after the country reported its first case of the coronavirus.

According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) 950 more COVID-19 cases were reported, including 928 local ones, raising the total caseload to 41,736.

The daily cases for Friday (reported Saturday) marks a sharp jump from 689 the previous day and is the highest since January, when the country reported its first confirmed COVID-19 case. The previous record was 909 tallied Feb. 29

Infection clusters from private gatherings coupled with massive infections at a church and a hospital pushed the tally up.

Among the locally transmitted infections, Seoul added 359 cases, and the surrounding Gyeonggi Province, 268, making up almost 70 percent of the total. Incheon, west of Seoul, had 42.

In western Seoul's Gangseo District, 59 people connected to a church were confirmed to have contracted the virus, while in Bucheon, west of the capital, 67 cases were reported at a care hospital.

The authorities urged citizens to strictly follow the current Level 2.5 social distancing measures, the second-strongest curbs under the country's five-tier virus restrictions, saying the regulations appear to have had a limited impact on slowing the coronavirus so far.

Health experts have been warning that South Korea could experience a bigger wave of infections in the winter as respiratory viruses usually proliferate when the weather is cold and dry, while people's immune systems generally weaken.

It took more than 80 days for the country to see its virus caseload increase from 20,000 to 30,000. However, it only took 20 days for the country to add another 10,000 cases after its tally surpassed 30,000, Nov. 20.

Provinces outside the metropolitan area also saw an increase in new infections from various events and places.

The southeastern city of Busan reported 58 cases, followed by Gangwon Province with 36, and Daegu and Ulsan with 35 and 23, respectively.

The country added 22 imported cases, including seven from the United States and three from Russia. The figure was up from 16 the previous day.

The number of seriously or critically ill COVID-19 patients came to 179, while the KDCA reported six additional deaths, raising the total to 578.

The number of people released from quarantine after making a recovery was 336, raising the total to 31,493. (Yonhap)