COVID-19 Critical Cases '1151' Record High... 5409 New Confirmed Cases

Omicron Infections Increase by 109 to Total 558... Largest Increase Ever

On the 28th, citizens are receiving diagnostic tests at the temporary screening clinic in the Peace Gate Plaza of Olympic Park, Songpa-gu, Seoul. According to the Central Disease Control Headquarters, as of midnight that day, the number of new COVID-19 confirmed cases was 3,865. The number of confirmed cases in the 3,000 range was recorded for the first time in 28 days since the 30th of last month (3,032 cases). Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Daehyun] The number of critically ill COVID-19 patients in South Korea has surpassed 1,150, setting a new record once again. The number of new confirmed cases was recorded in the 5,000 range, decreasing by about 2,000 compared to a week ago.

On the 29th, the Central Disease Control Headquarters (CDCH) announced that as of midnight, 5,409 new COVID-19 cases were confirmed, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 620,938. This is an increase of 1,544 cases from the previous day’s 3,865, marking a return to the 5,000 range after three days, but it is 2,046 fewer than the 7,455 cases reported a week ago (22nd).

However, the number of critically ill patients has not decreased. As of this day, the number of critically ill patients is 1,151, an increase of 49 from the previous day, setting a new record again. The number of critically ill patients has remained in the 1,000 range for nine consecutive days since the 21st.

The death toll increased by 36, bringing the total to 5,382, with a cumulative fatality rate of 0.87%. Although there were days with over 100 deaths since the 3rd (34 deaths), the number has dropped to the 30s for the first time in 26 days. The health authorities expect that the number of critically ill and deceased patients may begin to decline with a 1 to 2 week time lag.

The number of domestic Omicron variant infections reached a record high of 109 new cases, totaling 558. Among them, 40 were locally transmitted and 69 were imported cases.

Regarding the infection routes of new COVID-19 cases on this day, 5,283 were locally transmitted and 126 were imported. Among the locally transmitted cases, Seoul reported 1,869, Gyeonggi 1,608, and Incheon 309, totaling 3,786 cases (71.7%) in the metropolitan area. In non-metropolitan areas, there were 291 in Busan, 262 in Gyeongnam, 136 in Daegu, 117 in Chungnam, 109 in Jeonbuk, 103 in Gyeongbuk, 98 in Chungbuk, 87 in Gangwon, 80 in Gwangju, 77 in Daejeon, 47 in Ulsan, 39 in Jeonnam, 32 in Jeju, and 19 in Sejong, totaling 1,497 cases (28.3%).

The number of suspected cases tested at screening clinics the previous day was 55,259, and the number of tests conducted at temporary screening centers was 141,213, totaling 196,472 tests.

The COVID-19 vaccination completion rate in South Korea as of midnight on this day is 82.6% (a cumulative total of 42,432,990 people). The third dose has been administered to 16,582,758 people, accounting for 32.3% of the total population.