538 New COVID-19 Cases... Over 500 Cases for Two Consecutive Days

Citizens who visited the screening clinic set up at Seoul Station Plaza on the 23rd are lining up to get tested. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Chun-hee] The number of new COVID-19 cases in South Korea has remained in the 500s for two consecutive days.

The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) Central Disease Control Headquarters announced on the 24th at midnight that the total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases increased by 538 from the previous day to 136,467. Among the new cases, 513 were locally transmitted and 25 were imported.

About half of the locally transmitted cases occurred in the Seoul metropolitan area. There were 136 cases in Seoul (26.5%), 120 in Gyeonggi (23.4%), and 18 in Incheon (3.5%), totaling 274 cases in the metropolitan area.

Outside the metropolitan area, cases were reported as follows: 48 in Daegu, 28 in Chungnam, 19 in Jeju, 18 in Gangwon, 17 in Gyeongnam, 15 in Gwangju, 14 in Busan, 14 in Sejong, 12 in Ulsan, 12 in Jeonbuk, 12 in Jeonnam, 12 in Gyeongbuk, 11 in Daejeon, and 7 in Chungbuk.

There were 25 imported cases. Among them, 11 were detected during quarantine, and 14 were confirmed in the community. Fourteen were Korean nationals and 11 were foreigners.

The total number of tests conducted the previous day was 35,432. At temporary screening clinics set up in the metropolitan area, 14,116 tests were conducted, confirming 62 new cases. In non-metropolitan temporary screening clinics, 4,002 tests were conducted, confirming 10 cases.

The number of patients who have recovered and been released from isolation reached 126,427, an increase of 546 from the previous day. Among hospitalized patients, the number of critically ill patients decreased by 5 to 144. The death toll rose by 3 to 1,934.

On the morning of the 22nd, an elderly person is receiving the Pfizer vaccine at the COVID-19 vaccination center installed at Seongdong-gu Office in Seoul. [Image source=Yonhap News]

Meanwhile, as of midnight on the same day, 217 people received their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. Three received the AstraZeneca (AZ) vaccine, and 214 received the Pfizer vaccine. This brings the total number of people who have completed the first dose to 3,792,906, with 2,061,634 having received the AZ vaccine and 1,731,272 the Pfizer vaccine. The vaccination rate relative to the population is 7.4%.

The number of people who completed the second dose increased by 2,709 from the previous day to 1,746,336. Among them, 21 received the AZ vaccine and 2,394 the Pfizer vaccine. The second dose vaccination rate relative to the population is 3.4%. By vaccine type, 229,027 people completed the second dose of AZ, and 1,517,309 completed the Pfizer second dose.

Reports of suspected adverse reactions increased by 236 over two days since the 22nd, totaling 24,366 cases.

Five additional deaths following vaccination were reported. All had received the Pfizer vaccine. This brings the total number of deaths after Pfizer vaccination to 93, and the total deaths following COVID-19 vaccination to 153.

There were no reports of suspected anaphylaxis cases, and 11 cases of major adverse reactions such as special interest adverse events, ICU admission, or life-threatening conditions were reported.

The remaining 220 cases involved common post-vaccination reactions such as redness at the injection site, pain, swelling, muscle pain, fever, headache, and chills.

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