South Korea virus rises at slowest rate in 50 days
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea reported 50 new coronavirus cases, its lowest daily increase in nearly 50 days, likely as a result of enhanced social distancing to slow a large outbreak around the metropolitan area. the result of the measures.
Figures released by the South Korean Agency for Disease Control and Prevention on Monday brought the national caseload to 23,661, including 406 deaths. Thirty-four of the new cases were from metropolitan Seoul, where about half of the country’s 51 million people live, and 10 of them were linked to international arrivals.
Monday’s one-day increase was the slowest since Aug. 11, when 34 new cases were reported. The resurgence came after the country reported about 200 to 300 cases a day from mid-August to early September, forcing officials to tighten social distancing restrictions in the Seoul area and elsewhere.
Officials called for vigilance ahead of the Mid-Autumn Harvest Festival, which begins Wednesday and runs through the weekend. Thye implored people to stay home during the annual holiday, when South Koreans typically visit family and nightclubs, bars and other venues deemed “high risk” in Seoul will be closed during the holiday to reduce gatherings.