63,282 Confirmed Cases at 9 PM... Highest Saturday Midday Tally in 14 Weeks

On the 23rd, citizens who visited the Yongsan-gu Public Health Center COVID-19 screening clinic are waiting for their tests.

By 9 PM on the 23rd, over 60,000 new COVID-19 cases were reported nationwide, marking the highest number in 14 weeks.

According to local governments across the country, from midnight to 9 PM on that day, 63,282 people tested positive for COVID-19 across 17 cities and provinces nationwide.

This is the highest figure in 14 weeks since April 16 (91,566 cases), based on a Saturday 9 PM interim tally.

The number is 2,690 fewer than the previous day's count at the same time (65,972 cases), maintaining the 60,000 range for the fourth consecutive day.

Since there is still time until midnight when the tally closes, the number of new cases announced on the 24th is expected to be in the mid-60,000s.

As of 9 PM that day, new cases were 34,594 (54.7%) in the Seoul metropolitan area and 28,688 (45.3%) in non-metropolitan areas.

By region, the numbers are: Gyeonggi 17,317, Seoul 13,809, Gyeongnam 3,517, Incheon 3,468, Gyeongbuk 3,005, Chungnam 2,518, Jeonbuk 2,355, Chungbuk 2,257, Busan 2,228, Daejeon 1,986, Ulsan 1,984, Gangwon 1,895, Gwangju 1,660, Jeju 1,653, Jeonnam 1,532, Daegu 1,513, and Sejong 585.

Recently, the number of new cases tends to decrease on weekends, surge sharply at the beginning of the week, and then slightly decline toward the end of the week, while the overall scale is increasing.

As part of measures to respond to the resurgence of COVID-19, the government decided to strengthen diagnostic testing for overseas arrivals starting on the 25th. The PCR (polymerase chain reaction) test, which was previously required within three days of entry, will now be required on the first day of entry. Additionally, from the 25th, in-person visits to nursing hospitals will be suspended.

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