New virus cases in 600s for 4th day as sporadic infections continue

▲ A medical worker collects a specimen from a person for COVID-19 testing at a temporary screening station in front of Seoul Station on April 17, 2021. (Yonhap)

▲ Citizens stand in line to undergo COVID-19 testing at a makeshift clinic in Seoul on April 17, 2021. (Yonhap)

coronavirus-additional cases

New virus cases in 600s for 4th day as sporadic infections continue

SEOUL, April 18 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases stayed in the 600s for the fourth consecutive day Sunday as sporadic infections continue to pop up across the nation, complicating antivirus efforts against the fourth wave of the pandemic.

The country reported 672 more COVID-19 cases, including 649 local infections, raising the total caseload to 114,115, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said.

It added three more deaths, raising the total to 1,797.

Health authorities cautioned against a hike in group infections in public places, including sports facilities, churches, karaoke rooms, restaurants, workplaces and schools, as people increased outdoor activities in the spring season with the vaccination program under way.

Last week, the country decided to maintain the current level of social distancing rules through May 2 to contain the virus, while banning operations of entertainment establishments in the greater Seoul area and the southeastern port city of Busan.

The greater Seoul area, home to half of the nation's 52 million population, is under the Level 2 distancing scheme, the third highest in the five-phase system. The rest of the country is under Level 1.5, except for some municipalities that have adopted Level 2 measures.

The average daily number of locally transmitted cases stood at 621 over the past week, above the qualification for Level 2.5 distancing.

Officials warned of tougher rules on multiuse facilities and business operations if the current infection trend continues.

Of the newly confirmed locally transmitted cases, 202 came from Seoul, with Gyeonggi Province surrounding the capital city reporting 181 cases. The southeastern port city of Busan logged 30 new infections.

There were 23 additional imported cases.

The number of seriously or critically ill COVID-19 patients was 102, down six from the previous day.

The total number of people released from quarantine after making full recoveries was 104,006, up 412 from a day earlier.

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