COVID-19 New Cases 3,376... 236 Imported Cases Record High

On the 5th, when 4,444 new COVID-19 cases were reported, citizens who visited the temporary screening clinic set up at Seoul Station Plaza were waiting to get tested. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Seungjin Lee] On the 9th, the number of new COVID-19 cases was in the low 3,000s, and the number of critically ill patients was in the 800s. The number of new imported cases was 236, the highest ever recorded.

The Central Disease Control Headquarters (CDCH) announced that as of midnight on that day, the number of new COVID-19 cases was 3,376, which is 134 fewer than the previous day. The cumulative number of confirmed cases increased to 664,391.

The number of new cases has been declining since late December last year due to strengthened social distancing measures. Compared to 5,416 cases on December 26, two weeks ago, the number of confirmed cases on this day is 2,040 fewer.

The number of critically ill patients was 821, down 17 from the previous day (838), marking four consecutive days in the 800s since the 6th (882). The number of deaths increased by 51, bringing the total to 6,037. The cumulative fatality rate is 0.91%.

As of 5 p.m. the previous day, the utilization rate of COVID-19 severe care beds was 47.5% (823 out of 1,731 beds in use), a decrease of 1.6 percentage points from the previous day (49.1%). The utilization rate of severe care beds in the metropolitan area was 50.6%.

Regarding the infection routes of new confirmed cases, 3,140 were locally transmitted, and 236 were imported cases.

The number of imported cases was 236, an increase of 26 from the previous day (210). This is the highest number since the tracking of imported COVID-19 cases began. Due to the global surge in new cases caused by the spread of the Omicron variant, many confirmed cases are emerging among inbound travelers to Korea.

Combining local and imported cases (excluding quarantine), the metropolitan area accounted for 2,265 cases: Gyeonggi 1,114, Seoul 966, and Incheon 185. Cases were reported in all 17 cities and provinces nationwide.

Meanwhile, as of midnight on that day, the domestic COVID-19 vaccination completion rate was 83.8% (a cumulative total of 43,025,986 people), and the third dose vaccination rate was 41.0% of the total population (21,016,097 people).

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