Seoul capital area on edge as infections continue to soar

While the number of new coronavirus cases reported in South Korea remained below 100 for a fourth straight day Wednesday, cases in the capital area continued to increase, raising concerns over mass transmission in the region, home to 25 million people.

Gyeonggi Province, which surrounds Seoul, reported 15 new cases, bringing the total number of cases in the province to 277, according to the latest data by the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC).

This means that the province is now the most affected area outside Daegu and North Gyeongsang Province, which were deemed the epicenters of the virus here.

The KCDC explained it has confirmed 55 cases linked to the River of Grace Community Church in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, where Sunday services took place despite the government's social distancing advice.

Of the 55 patients, which include the church's pastor and his wife, 50 were based in the province, four in Seoul and one in South Chungcheong Province.

The health agency also mentioned a cluster infection associated with the Bundang Jesaeng Hospital in Bundang, Gyeonggi Province.

A total of 31 cases trace back to the hospital, including five patients and 19 hospital staff members.

Seoul reported five more cases, bringing the city's total infections to 270, while Incheon, the port city west of Seoul, added just one more case to reach 32.

In addition to infections linked to a church and internet cafe in the eastern ward of Dongdaemun and a call center in the southwestern ward of Guro, some recent cases were assumed to have come from abroad.

In Seoul alone, a total of five cases reported Tuesday and Wednesday were patients who recently arrived from European countries and the United States. Some of these case have not yet been included in the KCDC data, which is tallied at midnight every day.

The KCDC noted the recent rise in imported cases, saying there are so far 65 cases that are assumed to have come from abroad.

With imported cases on the rise, South Korea's foreign ministry has heightened its travel advisory for Europe, where cases have been rising at an alarming level.

On Thursday, the government is set to expand a special entrance procedure for all international arrivals. (Yonhap)