Omicron is raging, South Korea’s number of new diagnoses in a single day exceeds 600,000 for the first time

As of 0:00 on the 17th, South Korea had 621,328 new confirmed cases of the new crown compared with 0:00 the previous day, with a total of 8,250,592 confirmed cases.

The number of newly confirmed cases of the new crown pneumonia in South Korea in a single day has hit a new high in recent days.

On the 17th, South Korea’s Central Epidemic Prevention and Control Headquarters notified that as of 0:00 that day, South Korea had 621,328 new confirmed cases of new crown compared with 0:00 the previous day, with a total of 8,250,592 confirmed cases. While the daily increase in confirmed cases has hit the highest value since the outbreak in South Korea, it also ranks first in the world.

In fact, since March, the outbreak in South Korea has become increasingly serious due to the spread of the mutant strain of Omicron. On March 2, the number of newly diagnosed cases in South Korea in a single day exceeded 200,000 for the first time. The latest data shows that the detection rate of the mutant strain of Omicron in South Korea is as high as 99.96%.

Seoul citizens await nucleic acid testing. Source: Yonhap News Agency

The number of deaths from the new crown in South Korea is also constantly breaking records. Data show that from 0:00 on the 16th to 0:00 on the 17th, the number of new deaths in South Korea exceeded 400 for the first time, reaching 429, and the cumulative number of deaths was 11,481, with an average fatality rate of 0.14%.

On March 12, the cumulative death toll in South Korea exceeded 10,000 for the first time. “10,000 cases is not only a number, but also 10,000 precious existences.” On the same day, South Korean President Moon Jae-in posted on social media, expressing deep condolences for this.

The South Korean government previously predicted that the epidemic in South Korea would peak around March 22 due to the spread of the Omicron variant strain, and the number of new diagnoses in a single day would be 29.5. The range fluctuated between 10,000 and 372,000, but the data on the 12th exceeded the forecast range.

But even if the epidemic situation is so severe, South Korean media predict that the South Korean government may further relax epidemic prevention measures. Since March 5, the Korean government has decided to allow 12 types of public gathering places such as cafes and restaurants to extend the business closing time from 22:00 to 23:00, and the adjusted prevention and control measures will be implemented until the 20th. Korean media predict that the new version of the epidemic prevention measures will be announced as early as the 18th.

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Written by Deep Sea Otter

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