South Korea adds record Covid-19 cases, mulls tightening restrictions
Seoul, Jul 8 (EFE).- South Korea reported 1,275 new Covid-19 infections Thursday, a record number of daily cases since the pandemic began, as authorities consider tightening restrictions to stop the virus’ spread.
It is the first time the country registered more than 1,200 new infections two days in a row.
Of the 1,275 cases detected as of midnight Wednesday, 1,227 were domestic infections, while the other 48 correspond to people who entered the country from abroad. More than 80 percent of new infections are in the region around the capital Seoul, where more than half the country lives.
After evaluating this data, the country is studying the possibility of raising current restrictions to the highest level, especially in the capital, as Health Ministry Spokesman Sohn Young-rae told local news agency Yonhap on Thursday.
In the capital, gatherings of more than four people are not allowed and the restaurant must close at 10 p.m., measures that could be applied to the rest of the country, where rules were relaxed at the end of spring.
The infection volume in Seoul and its surrounding areas is almost at the level that allows authorities to activate Scale 4 of restrictions, the highest of all.
Level 4 implies, among other things, that no more than two people can meet after 6:00 p.m. and requires classes in colleges and universities to be taught online.
The recent increase in infections in South Korea seems to respond to the increased circulation of the more contagious delta variant of the virus, and is mainly affected by those between 20 and 39 years old, a group that still does not have access to the vaccine. .
South Korea, one of the countries that has best managed the pandemic (totaling only about 164,000 cases and 2,000 deaths), faces the problem of the global supply of vaccines.
This means that at the moment only 15.4 million people (30.1 percent of the population) have received at least one puncture and 5.49 million (10.8 percent) the complete pattern. EFE
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