Park Neung-hoo: "Domestic cases remain in the 100s for six consecutive days... A serious crisis situation"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Cho Hyun-ui] Park Neung-hoo, the first deputy head of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters (CDSCH) and Minister of Health and Welfare, emphasized on the 16th that the domestic spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) is a "serious crisis situation."

At the CDSCH meeting that day, Deputy Head Park said, "Considering the new infection pattern called community transmission and the infection rate that is not decreasing, the current situation is a very precarious phase."

The number of new confirmed cases in the country has exceeded 100 for six consecutive days. In particular, including imported cases from overseas, more than 200 confirmed cases occurred throughout last weekend.

Deputy Head Park said, "Unlike past infection cases where large-scale infections occurred in specific groups or facilities, recently infections centered on daily life such as gatherings among family and acquaintances and multi-use facilities have continued."

He then raised his voice, saying, "If the current infection trend continues, we are at a critical juncture where social distancing level adjustments must be implemented."

The government announced the day before a preliminary notice of raising social distancing levels for the metropolitan area and Gangwon Province. Deputy Head Park said, "We will also discuss response measures for other regions where infection cases have been reported, not only the metropolitan area and Gangwon region," and appealed, "We ask the public to recognize the current situation as a serious crisis."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.