South Korea Logs More than 250,000 COVID Cases; Deaths Hit All-Time High
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – South Korea’s daily COVID-19 cases stayed above 250,000 for the second consecutive day Saturday, and the daily death count reached another high amid the fast spread of the omicron variant.
The country reported 254,327 new COVID-19 infections, including 254,250 local cases, raising the total caseload to 4,212,652, Yonhap news agency reported according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).
The daily tally went down slightly from the previous day’s 266,853, when the figure hit a record high two days after daily infections surpassed 200,000 for the first time since the country reported the first virus case in January 2020, Bernama reported.
The total COVID-19 caseload surpassed 4 million Saturday, just five days after reaching the 3 million mark. The total count surpassed the 1 million mark earlier this month, the KDCA said.
The surge in infections pushed up the numbers of COVID-19 deaths and critically ill patients.
The country added 216 more COVID-19 deaths, the most ever. The death toll came to 8,796, and the fatality rate was 0.21 per cent, according to the KDCA.
The number of seriously ill virus patients jumped to 896 from the previous day’s 797.
The health authorities have said the current wave is expected to peak at some 350,000 daily cases in around mid-March as the highly contagious omicron variant is raging across the nation.