Newly Confirmed Cases 1,275 'Record High'... 994 Cases Reported in the Capital Area Alone (Update)

Local Cases 1,227, Imported Cases 48

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Ji-hee] The number of new COVID-19 cases in South Korea has finally reached an all-time high. As of midnight on the 8th, the number of new confirmed cases was 1,275, surpassing the previous record of 1,240 on December 25 last year. It appears that the much-feared "4th wave" is now in full swing.

The Central Disease Control Headquarters (CDCH) announced that as of midnight on this day, the total number of COVID-19 cases increased by 1,275 from the previous day to 164,028. The sources of infection were 1,227 cases from local transmission and 48 cases from overseas inflow.

Among the locally transmitted cases, 994 cases, accounting for 81%, occurred in the Seoul metropolitan area. This includes 545 in Seoul, 388 in Gyeonggi, and 61 in Incheon. Outside the metropolitan area, Chungnam, where a mass outbreak occurred at the Nonsan Training Center, reported the highest number of cases at 77. This was followed by Busan with 55 cases, Jeju with 17, Gangwon with 15, Daegu with 14, Daejeon with 12, Ulsan and Chungbuk with 8 each, Jeonnam and Gyeongnam with 7 each, Gyeongbuk and Sejong with 4 each, Jeonbuk with 3, and Gwangju with 2 cases.

There were 48 cases of overseas inflow. Among them, 25 were detected during quarantine, and 23 were confirmed locally. Of these, 25 were Korean nationals and 23 were foreigners. By country, Indonesia, where the Delta variant originating from India is rapidly spreading, reported the highest number with 16 cases.

The total number of tests conducted the previous day exceeded 100,000. The number of tests from suspected cases was 36,280, tests conducted at temporary screening centers in the metropolitan area were 74,787 (confirming 244 cases), and tests at temporary screening centers outside the metropolitan area were 3,921 (confirming 14 cases), totaling 114,988 tests.

Meanwhile, as of midnight on this day, 35,064 people received their first dose of vaccination. The cumulative number of first-dose vaccinations reached 15,476,019. The first-dose vaccination rate relative to the population remained at 30.1%. The number of people who completed vaccination increased by 61,306 from the previous day to 5,553,120. The proportion of fully vaccinated individuals relative to the population slightly rose to 10.8%.

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