Korea's new COVID-19 cases over 50,000 for 2nd day amid raging Omicron
A man has a nasal swab sample taken by a medical worker at a makeshift testing site in Seoul, Feb. 10. AP-Yonhap
Daily COVID-19 infections stayed above 50,000 for the second day in a row Thursday amid the fast spread of the highly transmissible Omicron variant across the nation.
The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) reported 53,926 new cases, including 53,797 local ones, raising the overall total to 1,239,287.
This was the second day in a row that the daily tally exceeded the 50,000 level ― a record high of 54,122 was reported for Wednesday.
New infections have nearly quadrupled over the past two weeks due to the Omicron variant, which accounted for more than 92 percent of all cases reported last week.
The health authorities have warned that the figure could reach 170,000 by around the end of the month, though it is too early to say if this will be the peak of the Omicron surge.
The death toll from COVID-19 came to 7,012, up 49 from Wednesday. (Yonhap)