Via Yonhap: 3rd wave of pandemic gets bigger as new virus cases soar to over 8-month high of 583. Excerpt:
SEOUL, Nov. 26 (Yonhap) -- The daily number of novel coronavirus cases in South Korea surpassed 500 for the first time in over eight months on Thursday due to sporadic cluster infections across the country as health authorities strive to curb a third wave of infections.
The country added 583 more COVID-19 cases, including 553 local infections, raising the total caseload to 32,318, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).
It marks the first time that the country's daily virus cases exceeded 500 since March 6, when the figure reached 518 due to a massive outbreak in the southeastern city of Daegu.
It is also above the peak in the country's second wave of virus infections on Aug. 27, when 441 cases were confirmed in a single day.
The daily caseload has stayed in the triple digits since Nov. 8, with the figure over 300 from Nov. 18-22. It dropped to 271 on Monday but bounced back to 349 cases Tuesday and 382 cases Wednesday.
The new virus cases are expected to stay well above 400 on Friday, as 349 confirmed cases had been tallied across the country on Thursday as of 6 p.m., according to health authorities and local governments.
The figure was up 13 from the same time of the previous day. Of them, 225 were reported in the greater Seoul area, with 124 reported in other regions.
Health authorities have been trying to curb a third wave of the pandemic before a nationwide college exam on Thursday next week, but cluster infections from private gatherings, public facilities, hospitals and the military are dragging down their containment efforts.
"We are now in a situation where virus outbreaks can happen at any place we live in," Health Minister Park Neunghoo said. "With the third wave of infections bulking up its size and pace, we must strictly follow social distancing rules."
