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Today’s first 3,000 people broke the record for the most every day in the aftermath of Chuseok… peak unpredictable

Long queues for COVID-19 testing in the afternoon

picture explanationLong queues for COVID-19 testing in the afternoon

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The spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) in Korea is not severe.

The 4th pandemic has been going on for nearly three months, but the momentum is getting stronger rather than being dampened.

The number of new confirmed cases soared to 2,400 as soon as the Chuseok holiday was over, the highest since the domestic Corona 19 crisis and is expected to exceed 3,000.

In particular, since the aftermath of the large-scale population movement during the Chuseok holiday has not yet begun in earnest, the scale of infection is highly likely to increase in the future.

Both quarantine authorities and infectious disease experts expect that the number of confirmed cases will continue to increase for the time being.

The peak of this fourth pandemic is literally unpredictable.

The government is expected to announce the ‘social distancing’ adjustment plan to be applied from the first week of October next week, but considering the current trend, it seems inevitable that the 2 weeks of the 4th stage in the metropolitan area and the 3rd stage in the non-metropolitan area will be extended.

◇ Four-digit number on the 81st day… As a result of the test, the waiting list exceeds 1 million, and the number of confirmed cases is likely to increase

According to the Central Quarantine Countermeasures Headquarters (Bangdaebon) on the 25th, as of 00:00 the previous day, there were 2,434 new confirmed cases of COVID-19.

It broke the record for the most in 44 days since 2,221 people on the 11th of last month. It has been 613 days since January 20, last year, when the first confirmed case was confirmed in Korea.

As the number of tests, which fell sharply during the Chuseok holiday, increased again, the number of confirmed patients also increased significantly.

Moreover, as of the previous day, there were 1,03,500 people waiting for the results of the diagnostic test, so the number of confirmed cases is expected to continue to increase.

In fact, as of 00:00 on the same day, the number of new confirmed cases is expected to be around 3,000 for the first time.

A total of 2,924 new confirmed cases were counted from 00:00 to 9pm the day before by the quarantine authorities and each local government including Seoul, 791 more than the 2,133 at the same time the previous day.

With 2,924 people, the record was already broken.

Considering the recent night time number of confirmed cases, the number is expected to reach around 2,200, or at most 2,300.

On the previous day, the number of people increased by 301 after 9 pm and the final number was 2,434.

[그래픽]  New cases of COVID-19

picture explanation[그래픽] New cases of COVID-19

The 4th pandemic, which started in early July, shows no sign of subside.

The number of confirmed cases per day has been in the four digits for 80 days in a row since July 7 (1,211 people), and today is the 81st day.

If we look at the new confirmed cases in the last week (18-24), 2,87 → 1,909 → 1,604 → 1,729 → 1,720 → 1,715 → 2,434 by day. It recorded an average of 1,885 people per day. Excluding those imported from overseas, the average daily number of confirmed cases is 1,858.

◇ The impact of population movement during the Chuseok holiday will begin in earnest next week… “The scale of the infection is likely to increase.”

By region, following the metropolitan area, the trend is gradually spreading in non-metropolitan areas.

The proportion of regionally-occurring confirmed cases in non-metropolitan areas, which was only around 20% at the beginning of the 4th pandemic, has risen from the mid-20s until the late 20s.

Of the 2,416 local cases excluding inflows from the previous day, 1,747 cases in the metropolitan area accounted for 72.3%, and 669 cases from non-metropolitan areas accounted for 27.7%, respectively.

If you look at the weekly statistics of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters (Critical Headquarters), the increase in non-metropolitan areas is notable.

In the past week (9.18~24), the daily average of local confirmed cases in the metropolitan area was 1,399.6, an increase of 38.5 (2.8%) from 1,361.1 in the previous week (9.11~17), but 404.7 in non-metropolitan areas during this period. The number increased by 53.7 (13.3%) from the previous year to 458.4.

The government expects that the number of confirmed cases will increase from next week due to the Chuseok holiday.

“The spread of the metropolitan area, which has continued before the holidays, is still serious, and the number of confirmed cases in non-metropolitan areas is highly likely to increase due to the increase in the nationwide movement during the Chuseok holiday,” said Lee Ki-il, the first chief of the Central Division.

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Medium-sized regular briefing

picture explanationMedium-sized regular briefing

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In the midst of this, the rate of confirmed cases, where it is unknown when or where they were infected, is also hitting a new high, raising concerns about further spread.

From the 11th of this month to the previous day, out of the 25,773 new confirmed cases reported to the quarantine authorities in the past two weeks, the route of infection of 9,791 people, 38%, has not yet been confirmed. About 4 out of 10 new cases are confirmed.

This ratio is the highest since the related counting started in April last year, and it means that the number of ‘hidden infections’ in the community is increasing that much.

The government is in a position to put all-out efforts to contain the number of confirmed cases for the time being.

Son Young-rae, head of the social strategy division of the Central Accident Resolving Headquarters (heavy-water version) emphasized the day before, “It is most important to change the trend to a decreasing trend because the trend is now on the rise.”

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