One Day Before New Social Distancing Measures... Nearly 800 New Cases, Highest in 68 Days (Update)

Local Cases 759, Imported Cases 35

On the 28th, amid growing concerns over the spread of new variants of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), overseas arrivals are waiting at Terminal 1 of Incheon International Airport. Photo by Mun Ho-nam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Ji-hee] On the 30th, one day before the new social distancing measures are applied, the number of new COVID-19 cases in South Korea approached 800. Due to the spread of cluster infections mainly in the Seoul metropolitan area, the daily confirmed cases rose back to the 700s for the first time in 25 days since the 5th.

The Central Disease Control Headquarters (CDCH) announced that as of midnight on the day, 794 new COVID-19 cases were confirmed domestically, bringing the total to 156,961. By infection route, 759 cases were locally transmitted and 35 were imported from overseas. On the day, the number of suspected case tests reported was 23,331, the number of tests at temporary screening clinics in the metropolitan area was 35,303, and the number of tests at temporary screening clinics outside the metropolitan area was 3,474, exceeding a total of 60,000 tests. At the metropolitan area temporary screening clinics, 177 people tested positive.

In the metropolitan area, Seoul alone reported 368 confirmed cases, accounting for more than 40% of the total confirmed cases. Gyeonggi and Incheon reported 234 and 29 cases respectively. Outside the metropolitan area, the cases were reported as follows: Daejeon 26, Gyeongnam 16, Gangwon 14, Busan 13, Daegu 11, Jeonbuk 10, Chungnam 8, Jeonnam 7, Gwanju 6, Chungbuk 5, Ulsan 4, Sejong and Gyeongbuk 3 each, and Jeju 2. New confirmed cases were added in all regions nationwide.

The number of imported cases was counted at 35. Seventeen were identified during quarantine, and the remaining 18 were confirmed in the local community. Among them, 18 were Korean nationals and 17 were foreigners.

The cumulative number of COVID-19 deaths increased by one from the previous day to 2,018. The number of critically ill patients decreased by three from the previous day to 149. The number of patients who were declared recovered and released from isolation increased by 616 to 147,693.

According to the COVID-19 Vaccination Response Promotion Team, as of midnight on the day, 16,084 people received their first dose, bringing the cumulative total of first-dose recipients to 15,321,254. The number of people who completed vaccination increased by 116,230 to a total of 4,905,462. The vaccination rate relative to the population was 29.8% for the first dose and 9.6% for those fully vaccinated.

Meanwhile, suspected adverse reactions reported after COVID-19 vaccination increased by 4,579 cases over two days since the 29th, bringing the cumulative total to 89,728 cases. There were 8 suspected anaphylaxis cases, 232 major adverse reaction cases, and 20 death cases added. The rest were common symptoms after vaccination such as muscle pain, headache, and fever.

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