Coronavirus: South Korea reports more than 800 new cases

Source: The Guardian

February 29, 2020 at 04:19

South Korean soldiers wearing protective gear spray disinfectant as part of preventive measures against the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus in Daegu. Photograph: YONHAP/AFP via Getty Images

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South Korea has reported more than 800 new coronavirus cases, bringing the country’s total infections to 3,150, the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) said on Saturday.

The country first said there were 594 new cases but later reported that an additional 219 new cases had been confirmed.

Together they logged a record daily increase in infections since South Korea confirmed its first patient on 20 January. Another person is confirmed to have died from the virus, bringing the death toll to 17.

South Korea has urged its citizens to stay indoors and warned it is facing a “critical moment” in its battle against the coronavirus.

The South Korean vice health minister Kim Kang-lip said: “We have asked you to refrain from taking part in public events, including a religious gathering or protest, this weekend. Please stay at home and refrain from going outside and minimise contact with other people.”

As many as 476 of the new cases were from south-eastern Daegu city, the site of a church at the centre of the outbreak. Health authorities have run tests on more than 210,000 members and 65,000 trainees of the church.