On April 17th, citizens are getting tested at the temporary COVID-19 screening clinic at Seoul Station. Photo by Mun Ho-nam munonam@
[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Hyewon] As the COVID-19 outbreak shows signs of resurgence, the number of new confirmed cases on the 3rd remained in the 10,000 range for the second consecutive day.
The Central Disease Control Headquarters announced that as of midnight on this day, there were 10,059 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total to 18,389,611. This is 656 fewer than the previous day (10,715), but it marked the second consecutive day with cases in the 10,000 range.
According to the Central Disease Control Headquarters, usually, the number of new confirmed cases is lower on weekends than on weekdays due to fewer tests being conducted. However, with the recent increase in COVID-19 cases, both Saturday and Sunday reported over 10,000 cases.
This is 3,821 more than a week ago on the 26th of last month (6,238 cases) and 3,994 more than two weeks ago on the 19th of last month (6,065 cases).
The daily number of new confirmed cases had steadily decreased since the peak of the Omicron variant outbreak in March and had been in the four-digit range since the 10th of last month.
However, on the 29th of last month (10,455 cases), the number rose back to over 10,000, then dropped below 10,000 again, and rose above 10,000 once more the day before.
The health authorities assess that the decline in COVID-19 cases has reached its limit and expect the trend to fluctuate with slight increases or decreases for the time being.
From the 27th of last month for one week, the daily new confirmed cases were 3,423 → 9,894 → 10,455 → 9,591 → 9,528 → 10,715 → 10,059, averaging 9,095 cases per day, which is nearly 2,000 more than the previous week (June 20?26, 7,079 cases).
With the exemption of quarantine for incoming travelers and the increase in international flights, the number of arrivals has risen, leading to an increase in imported cases as well. Among the new confirmed cases on this day, 191 were imported, 18 more than the previous day (173). This marks 10 consecutive days of triple-digit imported cases since the 24th (113 cases).
There were 9,868 locally transmitted cases.
The number of critically ill patients remained at 53, the same as the previous day. Since the 12th (98 patients), the number has stayed below 100.
The utilization rate of severe care beds is 5.7% (83 out of 1,469 beds in use), and there are 6,211 'one-stop medical institutions' nationwide that provide COVID-19 testing, treatment, and prescriptions.
The number of COVID-19 deaths reported the previous day was 8, one more than the day before (7). Among the deceased, five (62.50%) were aged 80 or older, and the remaining three were in their 70s. The cumulative death toll is 24,570, with a cumulative COVID-19 fatality rate of 0.13%.
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