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| Health officials carry out COVID-19 testing at a makeshift testing facility in an elementary school in Chuncheon, Gangwon Province, Sunday, as at least two students there tested positive for the virus. / Yonhap |
Daily infections near 400; 3-day total exceeds 1,000
By Jun Ji-hye
The health authorities said Sunday that the daily new COVID-19 infections here neared 400 the previous day with the number of patients increasing rapidly not only in the Seoul metropolitan region but also in other cities and provinces nationwide.
New cases have been mostly in Seoul and its surrounding areas since early May following an outbreak at Itaewon clubs, but infections have recently appeared to be spreading rapidly nationwide, with the latest number of new cases reported in non-capital areas nearing 100 daily.
The sharp increase in cases is mainly attributed to church-related infections having continued to spread to more people.
"Infections are spreading widely not only in the capital region but also other parts of the country," Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) Director Jung Eun-kyeong said during a media briefing. "The country is in a very grave situation as a second wave of infections will hit the entire nation if citizens do not comply with social distancing guidelines."
The KCDC reported 397 new cases Saturday ― the highest since early March ― including 387 locally transmitted ones, taking the total caseload to 17,399.
While the number of daily new cases has exceeded 300 for three consecutive days, Jung said the figure is likely to increase further as there are still many who have yet to be tested after having come into contact with infected people.
Among the 387 local infections, 294 reside in the capital area ― 138 in Seoul, 124 in Gyeonggi Province and 32 in Incheon. In non-capital areas, 93 patients were reported, including 15 in Gwangju and 14 in South Jeolla Province.
Cases traced to the Sarang Jeil Church in Seoul led by conservative pastor Jun Kwang-hoon have continued to increase.
The KCDC said 45 more infections were traced to the church, raising the total related cases to 841 as of noon Sunday.
Jun, who has led several anti-government rallies, with the most recent one held in central Seoul, Aug. 15, tested positive for COVID-19 Aug. 17. Thousands of demonstrators gathered for the rally despite the government's social distancing guidelines.
The KCDC said 136 infections were traced to the recent rally as of noon Sunday, noting that the patients were from various regions across the country.
In addition, at least two virus cases have been reported at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs building in central Seoul, leading the ministry to shut down some floors of the building.
Wearing masks 'mandatory'
The government raised social distancing guidelines from Level 1 to Level 2 for the entire country, beginning Sunday, in a desperate effort to stem the further spread of the coronavirus.
Regarding concerns that the measure would be insufficient to combat the infection, the KCDC director said, "We will continue to keenly monitor the situation and discuss when to raise the guidelines to Level 3."
Meanwhile, the Seoul Metropolitan Government said wearing face masks both indoors and outdoors will be mandatory in Seoul, beginning from Monday, to prevent the further spread of COVID-19.
