1652 People Until 9 PM, 94 Fewer Than Yesterday... 1800s Expected on the 3rd

Medical staff are guiding citizens at the temporary COVID-19 screening site set up at Seoul Station Plaza on the 1st, one day before the general strike announced by the Health and Medical Workers' Union. Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Daehyun] As the fourth wave of COVID-19 continues, confirmed cases have surged.

According to the quarantine authorities, Seoul city, and other local governments on the 2nd, a total of 1,652 new confirmed cases tested positive for COVID-19 from 0:00 to 21:00 on the same day. This is 94 fewer than the 1,746 cases recorded at the same time the previous day. It is also 30 fewer than the 1,682 cases recorded at 21:00 a week ago on the 26th of last month.

Looking at the regions where confirmed cases were reported on this day, the metropolitan area accounted for 1,157 cases (70.0%), and non-metropolitan areas accounted for 495 cases (30.0%). By city and province, Seoul had 540 cases, Gyeonggi 501, Incheon 116, Chungnam 81, Busan 57, Daegu 54, Gyeongnam 49, Daejeon and Gyeongbuk each 46, Gwangju 44, Ulsan 33, Chungbuk 29, Gangwon and Jeonbuk each 17, Jeju 10, Jeonnam 9, and Sejong 3.

Since there is still time left until midnight, when the tally closes, the number of new confirmed cases as of 0:00 on the 3rd is expected to increase to the 1,800s, possibly around 1,900. The previous day saw an increase of 215 cases after 21:00, closing at a final count of 1,961.

The fourth wave, which began in early July centered on the metropolitan area, has recently spread to various non-metropolitan regions, showing a nationwide pattern. The daily confirmed cases have remained in the four digits for 58 consecutive days since July 7th (1,211 cases). The 59th day will be on the 3rd.

Looking at the new confirmed cases reported over the past week from the 27th of last month to this day, the daily counts were 1,837 (corrected from 1,838) → 1,791 → 1,619 → 1,485 (corrected from 1,486) → 1,370 (corrected from 1,371) → 2,024 → 1,961, averaging about 1,727 cases per day. Excluding imported cases, the average number of locally transmitted cases is approximately 1,685 per day.

Recent major cluster outbreaks have been confirmed in various places such as restaurants, daycare centers, workplaces, and sports facilities. At a restaurant in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, a total of 28 confirmed cases were reported among visitors and employees. In two daycare centers in Bupyeong-gu, Incheon, small-scale cluster infections occurred consecutively, with 27 confirmed cases among children and teachers.

At a manufacturing company in Haman, Gyeongnam, after one employee tested positive on the 1st, 19 other employees and family members subsequently tested positive, bringing the total to 20. At a sports facility in Seo-gu, Busan, after one user tested positive, five other users and two family contacts were infected.

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