South Korea: Case record for second day in a row

A new coronavirus infection was reported in South Korea today for the second day in a row, with authorities initially suspending for two weeks the exemption of restrictive measures for all travelers, excluding those fully vaccinated, after the first five cases of the new Omicron variant.

As of midnight Wednesday, 5,266 infections had been confirmed by SARS-CoV-2, an unprecedented number since the outbreak of the pandemic in South Korea in January 2020, while another 47 patients died due to complications of COVID-19.

The death toll from the new coronavirus pandemic in the Asian country has so far reached 3,705 deaths out of a total of 457,612 infections. The mortality rate remains at 0.81%.

For the second time, the number of infections exceeded 5,000, at a time when the authorities are concerned about the continuing increase in the number of patients with very severe symptoms of the disease in hospitals: their number also broke a record today, reaching 733 (+10 in 24 hours) .

Authorities have been working for some time to secure more beds in intensive care units (ICUs). They aim to have an additional 1,300 available in mid-December.

From tomorrow Friday, all travelers will be required to be quarantined for 10 days upon arrival, authorities said after the first five cases of Omicron were identified – a fully vaccinated couple who returned from Nigeria last week, two members of his family and a friend.

South Korea has fully vaccinated 92% of its adult population, according to the Korea Office of Disease Control and Prevention (KDCA) figures; authorities are now focusing on immunizing children and administering booster doses. However, experts warn that the health crisis may escalate again, due to the potentially more contagious Omicron variant.

Source: ΑΠΕ-ΜΠΕ