Citizens visiting the COVID-19 screening clinic at the National Medical Center in Jung-gu, Seoul, are waiting for their turn to be tested. [Image source=Yonhap News]
[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Heung-soon] On the 26th, 583 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 were identified in South Korea. This is an increase of 201 cases in just one day compared to the 382 cases reported the previous day. This is the highest number of confirmed cases since the cluster infections centered around the Shincheonji Church of Jesus in Daegu and Gyeongbuk regions in February and March, indicating that the third wave is spreading uncontrollably.
According to the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters for COVID-19, as of midnight on this day, there were 553 new locally transmitted cases and 30 imported cases. The total number of confirmed cases has risen to 32,318.
This is the first time in 265 days since March 6th, when 518 new cases were reported, that the daily new cases have exceeded 500. It is also the highest daily number since March 3rd, when 600 cases were recorded.
Since the beginning of this month, the daily new cases have remained in the triple digits for 19 consecutive days after recording 118 cases on the 8th. Among these, there have been eight days with over 300 cases and one day with over 500 cases.
Of the locally transmitted cases, 208 were in Seoul, 177 in Gyeonggi, and 17 in Incheon, totaling 402 cases in the metropolitan area. Among the 30 imported cases, 12 were detected during quarantine, and the remaining 18 were confirmed in the community. Fourteen were Korean nationals and sixteen were foreigners.
The number of patients who have recovered and been released from isolation increased by 125 to 26,950 compared to the previous day. Two deaths were reported among confirmed cases, raising the total death toll from 513 to 515.
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