[Newsmaker] S. Korea’s daily COVID-19 cases top 100,000 for first time

South Korea’s daily COVID-19 cases surpassed the 100,000 mark for the first time since the country reported the first COVID-19 infection in January 2020.

According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, the country added 109,831 new COVID-19 infections during the 24 hours of Thursday. The total caseload came to 1,755,806.

Daily infection numbers have been surging due to the omicron wave.

On Jan. 26, the country added 13,004 new infections, the first time that the country’s daily infections surpassed the 10,000 mark.

The figure, however, continued to climb, topping the 50,000 mark on Feb. 10, just about a week ago.

The number of COVID-19 related deaths and critically ill patients, however, have not shown dramatic increases yet.

The number of COVID-19 deaths reported on Thursday reached 45, slightly up from the previous day’s 36. The death toll came to 7,283, and the fatality rate was 0.41 percent.

The number of critically ill COVID-19 patients reached 385, down four from a day earlier, though it marked the fifth straight day that the figure stayed above 300.

Although the country continues to grapple with the omicron wave, the government on Friday announced it would ease the current social distancing rules.

The curfew on cafes and restaurants will be extended by an hour to 10 p.m. starting on Saturday. The 6-person limit on private gatherings, however, will remain unchanged.

The changes will be effective from Saturday to March. 13, the government said.

As the government eases the social distancing rules, concerns have mounted over additional increases in the daily cases.

According to the latest estimate released by Shim Eun-ha, a mathematics professor at Soongsil University and researcher at the National Institute for Mathematical Sciences, the number of daily cases will peak at some 270,000 in mid-March.

Shim also warned that the figure could increase further if the government eases the existing social distancing curbs.

By Shim Woo-hyun (ws@heraldcorp.com)