South Korea on Saturday reported its largest daily increase of COVID-19 cases since April –113.
July 25 (UPI) — South Korea on Saturday reported its largest daily increase of COVID-19 cases since April –113. The Ministry of Health and Welfare said 86 of the cases were imported and 27 were local, raising the total number of cases to since the pandemic started to 14,092. The country has also reported 298 deaths since the outbreak began, the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. The spike marked the first time since April 1 that South Korea reported more than 100 new cases in a day, Yonhap News Agency reported. The country reported its first COVID-19 case Jan.20 and reached a peak of 909 daily cases Feb.29.South Korean workers arriving in the country from Iraq Friday were partially to blame for the spike, health officials said. Out of some 300 workers returning home from Iraq,71 have tested positive for COVID-19. Among the 27 new local COVID-19 cases, most of the new infections were from Seoul and the Gyeonggi province surrounding capital city. Most of the imported cases were from Iraq and Russia with 36 imported cases from Iraq and 34 from Russia. The Philippines also made up five of the imported cases and three came from the United States, according to the Korean CDC. The daily infection rate fell below 30 for the first time in over a few weeks Monday, and increased throughout the week with cases linked to a nursing home, churches and a military base. One church in southern Seoul recorded 10 new infections after failing to follow guidelines that banned gatherings other than regular worship services to maintain social distancing.
