Korea reports more than 100,000 COVID-19 cases for 2nd day

People wait for COVID-19 tests outside a public health center in Seoul, Feb. 17. AP-Yonhap

Korea saw more than 100,000 new COVID-19 infections for the second day in a row Friday amid the rapidly spreading the highly transmissible Omicron variant of the coronavirus.

The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) reported 102,211 cases, including 102,072 local ones, raising the total caseload to 1,858,009.

The death toll from COVID-19 reached 7,354, up 71 from Thursday for a fatality rate of 0.4 percent, the KDCA said.

The number of critically ill COVID-19 patients came to 408, up 23 from a day earlier.

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The country has seen caseloads spike in recent weeks as the Omicron variant has raged nationwide, with the daily count nearly doubling in just a week after surpassing 50,000 for the first time Feb. 10.

Daily infections exceeded 100,000 for the first time Thursday.

The health authorities forecast that the Omicron wave will likely start to peak between the end of this month and early March, with the daily caseload expected to reach 130,000 to 180,000.

Despite the virus surge, the government decided Friday to ease business hour curfews for cafes and restaurants by one hour to 10 p.m., for the next three weeks, a move unwelcomed by some experts amid concerns over a further virus uptick.

The decision came following a strong backlash from small merchants and self-employed people who have complained that prolonged antivirus measures are dragging down sales.

The cap on private gatherings will stay unchanged at six people.

The partially relaxed antivirus curbs will be in place until March 13.

As of Saturday, 30.31 million people, or 59.1 percent of the country's 52 million population, had received booster shots. The number of fully vaccinated people came to 44.29 million, accounting for 86.3 percent, the KDCA said.

Of the locally transmitted cases reported for Friday, Gyeonggi Province surrounding Seoul had 30,641, the capital saw 23,135, while Incheon to the west had 7,816. Cases from overseas rose 139 to 28,003. (Yonhap)

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