SEOUL, Jul 26 (Yonhap) – The daily number of novel coronavirus (Covid-19) cases in South Korea fell below 1,400 on Monday due to the decline in weekend testing, but more contaminations continued to appear outside of the Seoul area during the summer holiday season.
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The country added 1,318 cases of Covid-19, including 1,264 local infections, bringing the toll to 190,166, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).
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Compared to the day before, 169 fewer cases have been identified.
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The KDCA reported four more deaths from Covid-19, bringing the death toll to 2,077. The death rate was 1.09%.
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Health authorities remain on alert as the number of daily cases typically increases mid-week as more people are tested.
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Daily transmissions have been above 1,000 since July 7, reaching as high as 1,842, due to the resurgence in the Seoul metropolitan area with the highly contagious Delta variant.
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The spread of the virus to areas other than greater Seoul has also been a problem recently, as vacationers visit tourist spots across the country during the summer season, with around 40% of new infections reported coming from areas other than the capital. .
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In order to stem the spread of the virus, South Korea extended the highest Level 4 social distancing measures in greater Seoul for another two weeks, until August 8. The strictest distancing restrictions ban gatherings of more than two people after 6 p.m., impose a 10 p.m. curfew on restaurants and cafes, and ban activities at nightclubs and other entertainment venues.
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The country has also decided to apply Level 3 distancing restrictions outside greater Seoul from this Tuesday through August 8 to better contain the virus during the summer holiday season.
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Below level 3, cafes and restaurants can accept customers until 10 p.m. and only take-out and delivery services are available after that time. Private gatherings of five or more people are prohibited, while mass gatherings can accommodate fewer than 50 participants.
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South Korea is also trying to curb the rise in infections, especially among people aged 20 to 40, as routes of transmission involving these age groups are unknown in many cases, with the vaccination campaign focusing mainly on the elderly population as well as workers in medical and social services.
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A total of 16.89 million people, or 32.9% of the country’s population, have received their first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine, and 6.85 million have been fully vaccinated, the KDCA said.
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After vaccination, 105,324 cases of side effects have been reported since the start of inoculations on February 26, although 95% of them turned out to be mild symptoms. There were 427 deaths following the vaccination.
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The country began on Monday to vaccinate 3.04 million people aged 55 to 59 in order to intensify its vaccination campaign.
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Contaminations from areas outside the capital accounted for 40.7% of new national confirmed cases, the highest share in the middle of the fourth wave of the pandemic. The southeastern port city of Busan and surrounding South Gyeongsang Province have reported 83 and 75 cases, respectively.
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In the capital region, Seoul reported 339 infections, while surrounding Gyeonggi Province added 343. The western port city of Incheon has confirmed 67 cases.
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Imported cases stood at 54, down 11 from the previous day. The total number of imported cases is now 11,571, of which 15 were from Indonesia, followed by Russia with 10.
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The total released from quarantine after fully recovering was 167,375, 990 more than the day before.
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The number of critically ill patients stood at 244, down 13 from a day earlier.
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