New cases below 2,000 for first time in 2 days, virus curbs extended for 2 weeks

Daily new COVID-19 infections fell below 2,000 here for the first time in two days Friday, while the authorities are set to extend tough restrictions to battle the fast spread of the fourth wave of the coronavirus driven by the more transmissible Delta variant.

The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) reported 1,880 more cases, including 1,814 local ones, raising the cumulative caseload to 234,739.

The daily number was down from 2,152 for Wednesday and 2,052, Thursday.

Daily cases exceeded 1,000, July 7, and have stayed above that mark for 46 days in a row amid the fast rise of the Delta variant.

The country added five more deaths from COVID-19, raising the toll to 2,202.

The fourth wave of the pandemic has shown no signs of letup although stringent virus restrictions have been in place amid slower-than-expected vaccinations.

The greater Seoul area, where half of the nation's 52 million population lives, has been under Level 4 distancing guidelines, the highest in the government's four-tier antivirus measures, for the past six weeks, while most other areas have implemented Level 3 distancing for the last four weeks.

The current measures were set to expire Sunday, but the authorities decided to maintain them ― with some adjustments ― until Sept. 5 as the fourth wave of the pandemic has yet to be put under control.

Under the measures that will continue to be in effect from Monday, restaurants and cafes will be required to close at 9 p.m., an hour earlier than the current regulation.

The semi-lockdown measures prohibit gatherings of more than two people after 6 p.m., and completely ban the operation of nightclubs and other entertainment venues.

A total of 25.5 million people, or 49.7 percent of the population, have received their first shots of COVID-19 vaccines, while 11.1 million have been fully vaccinated, the KDCA said.

The government aims to vaccinate at least 70 percent of the nation's population by September to create herd immunity in November, but a delay in the vaccine supply by U.S. drugmaker Moderna has sparked concerns over the feasibility of this plan.

Of the newly confirmed domestic cases, 518 were in Seoul, 585 in the surrounding Gyeonggi Province and 90 in the western port city of Incheon.

The southeastern port city of Busan reported 86 new patients, and North Gyeongsang Province, 109.

There were 66 imported cases, with 49 of them coming from Asian nations, excluding China.

The number of patients with serious symptoms across the country reached 403, up 18 from a day earlier; while people released from quarantine after making a recovery numbered 204,518, up 1,743. (Yonhap)