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Korea confirms 2nd death after vaccination

gettyimagesbankSouth Korea's health authorities on Monday confirmed the country's second vaccine-linked death, as a man in his 20s who received the first dose of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine died last month.The man, who received the shot on June 7, died at a hospital six days later after suffering cardiac arrest, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). The victim did not have any underlying disease.Local authorities carried out an autopsy and later confirmed that the victim suffered from inflammation of the heart muscle, or myocarditis.It marked the second time for local health authorities to acknowledge death after vaccination."Although it is very rare, mRNA vaccines can lead to side effects such as heart inflammation," a local health official said. The country has been administering four types of vaccines ― AstraZeneca, Pfizer, Moderna, and Janssen. Of them, those of Pfizer and Moderna are based on the mRNA technology. South Korea reported its first vaccine-related death on June 21, when another man in his 30s died of a rare case of blood clotting after re

Jul 26, 2021
Korea confirms 2nd death after vaccination

New cases spiking outside Seoul; toughened distancing extended

An exhausted worker in a booth rests during coronavirus testing at a makeshift testing site in Seoul, July 22. AP-YonhapSouth Korea's daily new coronavirus cases fell below 1,400 Monday due to fewer tests over the weekend, but more cases continued to pop up outside the greater Seoul area amid the summer vacation season. The country added 1,318 COVID-19 cases, including 1,264 local infections, raising the total caseload to 190,166, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).The daily caseload was down 169 from the previous day. The country added four more COVID-19 deaths, raising the death toll to 2,077. The fatality rate was at 1.09 percent.Health authorities are keeping their guard up, as the country's daily cases usually go up in the middle of the week as more people get tested. The daily caseload has remained above 1,000 since July 7, reaching as high as 1,842, due to the resurgence in the greater Seoul area with the highly transmissible delta variant. The spread of the virus in non-Seoul regions has recently been a problem, as vacationers travel to touris

Jul 26, 2021
New cases spiking outside Seoul; toughened distancing extended

Gov't struggling to prevent virus spread in holiday season

People line up for COVID-19 diagnostic tests at a makeshift testing center in front of Seoul Station, Sunday. YonhapSocial distancing level for rural areas to be raised to 3By Bahk Eun-jiThe government's all-out efforts to contain COVID-19 are falling flat as infections are getting out of control, spreading to all parts of the nation as people travel across the country for summer vacation. Level 4, the toughest level of social distancing rules in Seoul and surrounding metropolitan area, have been extended for another two weeks, and the government decided to raise the level for all other regions uniformly to 3 starting Tuesday.The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) reported 1,487 more COVID-19 infections for Saturday, including 1,422 local ones, raising the total caseload to 188,848.Saturday's daily caseload is the highest ever for a weekend day. It was down from the previous day's 1,629, but the decline was mainly due to reduced testing on weekends. It was also the 19th consecutive day for the daily tally to surpass 1,000.On Friday, the government decided to extend th

Jul 25, 2021By Bahk Eun-ji
Gov't struggling to prevent virus spread in holiday season

Daejeon to enforce strongest virus curbs from Tuesday

Daejeon Mayor Heo Tae-jeong / Korea Times fileSouth Korea's central provincial city of Daejeon will become the first non-Seoul area to adopt the strongest coronavirus distancing rules that center on banning private gatherings starting early this week, officials said Sunday. The Level 4 restrictions, the strongest in the four-tier distancing rules, will be applied from Tuesday until Aug. 8, Daejeon City Mayor Heo Tae-jeong said in a press briefing. The Level 4 distancing limits gatherings to two people after 6 p.m., and all private events are banned. Restaurants and cafes are allowed to open until 10 p.m., and other entertainment venues must close for the designated period. Daejeon has recorded 499 infection cases in the past week, with the daily average at 71.3. The minimum daily tally to qualify for the highest level of the four-tier distancing scheme is 60. Currently, the greater Seoul area has been under the toughest virus restrictions since early July, as the region has emerged as the epicenter of the fourth wave of the pandemic.The country's health authorities will hold a meetin

Jul 25, 2021
Daejeon to enforce strongest virus curbs from Tuesday

New cases under 1,500 on fewer tests; virus spreading fast in non-capital areas

A medical worker in a booth takes a nasal sample from a man during coronavirus testing at a makeshift testing site in Seoul, July 22. AP-YonhapSouth Korea's daily new coronavirus cases fell below 1,500 Sunday due to fewer tests over the weekend, but infections in non-metropolitan areas continued to pile up in the summer vacation season.The country added 1,487 COVID-19 cases, including 1,422 local infections, raising the total caseload to 188,848, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).Daily infections fell from 1,629 on Saturday, 1,630 on Friday and a record high of 1,842 on Thursday, when 270 infected members of the 301-strong Cheonghae Unit on an anti-piracy mission off Africa were counted. The daily caseload has remained above 1,000 since July 7 due to the resurgence in the greater Seoul area and the spread of the virus in non-Seoul regions as vacationers headed to tourist spots across the country in the summer season and highly transmissible delta variant cases increased.The country added five more COVID-19 deaths, raising the death toll to 2,073. The

Jul 25, 2021
New cases under 1,500 on fewer tests; virus spreading fast in non-capital areas

New cases above 1,600 amid stepped-up fight against 4th wave of pandemic

People queue for a coronavirus test at a testing site in Seoul, July 21. AP-YonhapDaily new COVID-18 cases remained above 1,600 for Friday, as the authorities struggled to stem the fourth wave of the coronavirus with the extension of the toughest virus curbs in the greater Seoul area.The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) reported 1,629 COVID-19 infections, including 1,573 local ones, raising the total caseload to 187,362.The latest number was down from Thursday's 1,630 total and a record high of 1,842 for Wednesday, when 270 infected members of the 301-strong Cheonghae Unit, who were on an anti-piracy mission off Africa, were counted. The daily caseload has remained above 1,000 since July 7 due to a resurgence in the greater Seoul area and the spread of the virus in other regions attributable to increased activities during the summer vacation season and the highly transmissible Delta variant.The KDCA reported two more COVID-19 deaths, raising the death toll to 2,068.South Korea has been scrambling to curb rising infections particularly among those in their 20s, 30s a

Jul 24, 2021
New cases above 1,600 amid stepped-up fight against 4th wave of pandemic

Labor group holds mass rally in defiance of COVID-19 restrictions

People climb a hill near the National Health Insurance Service building in Wonju on Friday to join a rally by the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, as they cannot enter the building's main entrance that was blocked by police officers and their buses to prevent the rally due to safety concerns amid the raging COVID-19 pandemic in the country. YonhapA major umbrella labor union held a rally in Wonju on Friday, drawing some 400 people in defiance of the government's calls for restraint amid the raging COVID-19 pandemic.The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) went ahead with its scheduled rally outside the National Health Insurance Service building in this city 132 kilometers southeast of Seoul, demanding the agency directly employ its call center workers rather than through a third party.The government had urged the KCTU to call off the plan, citing the potential for mass COVID-19 infections as the country grapples with the fourth wave of the pandemic.The government of Wonju raised its social distancing guidelines to the second-highest Level 3 effective Friday and separately

Jul 23, 2021
Labor group holds mass rally in defiance of COVID-19 restrictions

Vaccination incentive to be rescinded for travelers from 10 more countries

Quarantine officials guide foreign arrivals at Terminal 1 of Incheon International Airport, Tuesday. YonhapBy Jun Ji-hyeRussia, Uzbekistan and eight other countries have been newly designated by the Korean government as nations where highly contagious variants of the coronavirus are spreading quickly, thus arrivals from those countries will no longer be exempt from the 14-day mandatory self-isolation next month, even if they have been fully vaccinated.On Friday, the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters announced its updated list of 26 countries where virus variants are prevalent, and citizens of these countries will no longer be eligible for the self-quarantine exemption starting August. The headquarters maintained 16 countries which had already been included in the list. They are South Africa, Malawi, Mozambique, Bangladesh, Botswana, Brazil, Suriname, the United Arab Emirates, Eswatini, Uruguay, India, Indonesia, Zimbabwe, Chile, Paraguay and the Philippines.The 10 newly added countries are Nepal, Russia, Lebanon, Malaysia, Vietnam, Haiti, Angola, Uzbekistan, Kuw

Jul 23, 2021By Jun Ji-hye
Vaccination incentive to be rescinded for travelers from 10 more countries

Concerns on mix-and-match vaccinations rise after first death reported in Korea

People are observed for possible side effects after receiving their COVID-19 vaccine injections at a vaccination center in Seodaemun District, Seoul, Thursday. YonhapBy Lee Hyo-jin Concerns are rising over mix-and-match inoculation of COVID-19 vaccines, following the death of a police officer who received a Pfizer dose for his second shot after an AstraZeneca for his first one. This is the first death reported since July 5 when the Korean government introduced mix-and-match inoculations, using the AstraZeneca vaccine for the first dose and Pfizer for the second.A 52-year-old police officer at Chilgok police station in North Gyeongsang Province died, July 20, three days after having been administered with a Pfizer dose. After his family found him unconscious at home around 2 a.m., he was transferred to a nearby hospital, but was pronounced dead about an hour later. He received his first shot of the AstraZeneca dose April 28, followed by a Pfizer vaccine on July 17. He exhibited symptoms of headache and chills after the second dose, according to his family. The Korea Disease Control an

Jul 23, 2021By Lee Hyo-jin
Concerns on mix-and-match vaccinations rise after first death reported in Korea

New cases above 1,600 amid 4th wave of pandemic

People wait to get tested for COVID-19 at a testing center in Seoul Station, July 23. YonhapSouth Korea's daily new coronavirus cases dropped Friday from the previous day's all-time high, but authorities extended the toughest virus curbs in the wider Seoul area to curb a further rise in new infections. The country added 1,630 COVID-19 cases, including 1,574 local infections, raising the total caseload to 185,733, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).The latest figure was down from a record high of 1,842 on Thursday when 270 patients from a virus-hit Cheonghae naval unit were counted as imported cases.The daily caseload has remained above the 1,000 threshold since July 7 due to the resurgence in the greater Seoul area, and the coronavirus has been spreading across the nation with increased activities in the summer season and the fast rise of the highly contagious delta variant.The country added three more COVID-19 deaths, raising the death toll to 2,066 The nation is in an uphill battle against the worst wave of the pandemic with a rising proportion of p

Jul 23, 2021
New cases above 1,600 amid 4th wave of pandemic
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