S. Korea’s new virus cases lowest in 7 weeks, but social distancing again urged

South Korea on Thursday reported its fewest additional cases of the new coronavirus since late February, as the country is implementing an extended social distancing drive to fight against the virus pandemic.

The 39 new cases, detected Wednesday and down from 53 a day ago, brought the nation’s total infections to 10,423, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC).

Medical workers walk to a resting place after working a shift for coronavirus patients at Dongsan Hospital in Daegu, 302 kilometers southeast of Seoul, on April 9, 2020. (Yonhap)

The nation’s death toll from the coronavirus, which emerged in China late last year, rose by four to 204, according to the KCDC. In total, 6,973 people in South Korea have recovered from the virus.

It was the first time since Feb. 20 that the daily tally of new infections fell below 40, but Vice Health Minister Kim Ganglip warned against complacency.

Since April 1, South Korea has implemented two-week quarantines for all passengers coming from abroad. A total of 16 foreigners have been admitted to an isolation facility in Paju, north of Seoul, and two of them declared cured, Kim said.

Kim thanked front-line medical staff and other workers engaged in containment measures, saying that their “sacrifice and cooperation” have helped South Korea see a continued slowdown in the virus outbreak.

KCDC Director-General Jeong Eun-kyeong also expressed concerns that social distancing may be eased ahead of the Easter weekend and next week’s parliamentary election.

“I earnestly ask people to practice social distancing over the weekend because an explosion of large-scale infections could happen again at anytime,” Jeong said.

Those who are put under self-isolation are banned from participating in early voting, but health authorities are in discussions with the government to allow them to vote on April 15, Jeong said.

Daegu and North Gyeongsang Province, the nation’s two worst-affected regions, reported four and no new cases, respectively, the KCDC said. The total number of cases reported in Daegu and the surrounding North Gyeongsang Province reached 6,807 and 1,320, respectively.

Other major provinces and cities also reported infections, with Seoul and the surrounding Gyeonggi Province adding 12 and 10 new cases, respectively.

The country also detected 10 new cases coming from overseas at border checkpoints, raising the country’s total number of imported cases to 861.

Seeking to reduce the daily number of new infections to below 50, South Korea has extended strict guidelines on social distancing by two weeks to April 19. South Korea has tested 494,711 people so far.