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| People wait in line to be tested for COVID-19 at a makeshift testing center in Seoul, Feb. 7, as the country's new caseload hit a fresh high of 35,131 the same day. Yonhap |
New COVID-19 infections remained at more than 35,000 for the third day in a row Sunday, despite fewer tests over the weekend, as the highly infectious Omicron variant rages across the country following a major holiday.
The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) reported 35,286 new cases, including 35,131 local ones, raising the total to 1,044,963.
The accumulated virus caseload surpassed the grim milestone of 1 million the previous day, two years after Korea reported its first COVID-19 case.
Daily infection tallies reported Monday for the weekend tend to slow due to fewer tests, but the fast spread of the Omicron variant appears to have broken the trend.
The health authorities said the number of new patients could possibly reach between 130,000 and 170,000 by the end of the month due to the fast spread of the strain.
The daily tally surged to over 30,000 for the first time Friday, just three days after breaking the 20,000 mark. The figure topped the 10,000 level for the first time Jan. 26.
The death toll from COVID-19 came to 6,886, up 13 from Sunday for a fatality rate of 0.66 percent.
The number of critically ill COVID-19 patients was 270, down two from a day earlier, the KDCA said. The number has stayed in the 200-range for 10 days in a row.
The authorities said the Omicron variant is twice as transmissible as the previous Delta strain, but it has up to one-fifth of a chance of developing into a severe illness.
The KDCA said intensive care unit beds for critically ill COVID-19 patients were 18.2 percent full nationwide, staying at a stable level.
At-home care patients rose 17,729 from the previous day to a total of 146,445 due to the fast spread of milder cases of COVID-19 and those without symptoms, the KDCA added.
The authorities said at-home care treatment will now be more focused on patients aged 60 or older, with up to 650 institutions across the country that could monitor up to 210,000 people.
Of the locally transmitted cases, Gyeonggi Province that surrounds Seoul reported 9,780, followed by the capital with 6,873 and the western port city of Incheon with 2,366, the KDCA said. Daily new overseas cases dropped 34 from the previous day. (Yonhap)
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