South Korean health officials reported, Sunday, the country's biggest single-day increase in COVID-19 infections since March and said the government may reimpose a tougher lockdown and social distancing policy as the virus continued to spread.
The 297 new cases tallied late Wednesday mark the sixth consecutive day of a three-digit spike in a nation that has succeeded in averting previous outbreaks. Officials have thus banned sports activities, online gaming cafes, large social gatherings, and closed down night clubs and churches as part of a new mandate to fight the disease.
The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 397 new cases late Saturday, rising from the previous day's 332 which marks over a week of daily triple-digit increases. These figures bring the country's total virus cases to nearly 17,400 with 309 COVID-19 fatalities, the KCDC disclosed.
According to South Korean Health Vice Minister Kim Gang-lip, the government is in a "desperately dangerous" health emergency where the virus spreads in the Seoul metropolitan area and threatens to create huge transmissions around the country.
While most of South Korea's fresh cases emerged from the highly-populated Seoul district, which in the past weeks has been the center of the outbreak, infections have also been registered in nearly every municipality or city, stoking fears that the disease is becoming very difficult to contain.
Government officials said they might later apply the strictest Level 3 pandemic restrictions, where businesses and schools will be ordered to close if the rate of infections does not drop.
Some 140 of the new cases are connected to the Sarang Jeil Church in northern Seoul, placing the total number of infections from the site to almost 600. The church is operated by a controversial conservative evangelist, Rev. Jun Kwang-hun, who was also diagnosed with having COVID-19.
South Korean Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun stated that the government would carry out legal action against the pastor and the church if they try to disrupt contact-tracing and testing measures and for refusing to submit the correct list of members.
Jung Eun-Kyeong, Director General at the KCDC, disclosed that a total of 840 confirmed COVID-19 infections were tied to the church so far. He urged the people to remain at home as much as possible unless it is really necessary for them to go out, like buy food, go to work or see the doctor.
Over 22 million people around the globe have tested positive of the virus, and around 14 million have recovered, while over 779,000 have perished, data by the Johns Hopkins University showed.
