New cases in 1,300s on fewer tests; virus curbs extended for a month

South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases fell back to the 1,300s on Monday due to fewer tests over the weekend, while health authorities extended the tough virus curbs ahead of a major national holiday.

The country added 1,375 more COVID-19 cases, including 1,351 local infections, raising the total caseload to 261,778, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).

The daily caseload fell to a five-week low for any Monday, when new cases usually remain lower than other weekdays due to fewer tests over the weekend.

It is down from 1,490 on Sunday, 1,804 on Saturday, and 1,709 on Friday.

Daily cases have stayed in the four-digits for the last 62 days amid the fast rise of the more transmissible variants across the nation.

The country added six more deaths from COVID-19, raising the death toll to 2,321.Ahead of the Chuseok holiday later this month, authorities decided to extend the current distancing measures -- Level 4 in the greater Seoul area, which is the highest in the four-tier system, and Level 3 in other regions -- through Oct. 3.

Despite the stringent curbs, some restrictions were eased to give leeway to vaccinated people and allow more students to take in-person classes to mitigate the prolonged pandemic's impact on the local economy.

The country has been banning gatherings of more than four people nationwide, but the revised guidelines allow gatherings of up to six in the capital area, though they should include at least two vaccinated people during the daytime and four after 6 p.m.

Restaurants and bars in the greater Seoul area will be allowed to operate until 10 p.m., an hour later than the current restriction of 9 p.m.

The cap on in-person attendance was increased to two-thirds for middle school students and to half or the entire student body for high school students in areas under Level 4.

First and second grade elementary students, as well as senior high school students, will be allowed to attend in-person classes every day.

Health authorities said they will consider further easing restrictions if the infections dip to a manageable level after the Chuseok holiday to help bring life back to normal.

Slightly over 30 million people, or 58.4 percent of the country's 52 million population, have received their first shots of COVID-19 vaccines, and 17.7 million people, or 34.6 percent, have been fully vaccinated, the KDCA said.

The country plans to provide at least one jab to 70 percent of the population by the end of September to create herd immunity in November.

Of the newly confirmed domestic cases, 462 were from Seoul, 398 from the surrounding Gyeonggi Province and 80 from the western port city of Incheon.

Imported cases, which include South Korean nationals, came to 24.

The number of patients with serious symptoms across the country reached 358, down 5 from the previous day.

The total number of people released from quarantine after making full recoveries was 233,695, up 1,361 from a day earlier. (Yonhap)