- Of the six cases detected, two were detected at quarantine checkpoints
- Recovery rate 79.4%, Active cases under 2,000 (1,967 people)
South Korea reported another single-digit number of new coronavirus cases Friday, apparently on the back of a strict social distancing campaign and enhanced quarantine measures.
The country added six new COVID-19 cases, bringing the nation’s total infections to 10,708, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC).
The number of new infection cases has hovered below 20 for the past few days.
The figure marks a drastic drop from the Feb. 29 peak of 909 new cases. The country confirmed its first COVID-19 infection on Jan. 20.
Of the six cases detected, two were detected at quarantine checkpoints, according to the KCDC.
The nation’s death toll from the respiratory disease remained unchanged at 240, the authorities said.
In total, 8,501 virus patients in South Korea have been discharged from hospitals, up 90 from a day earlier.
The number of new infections continued to slow in the southeastern city of Daegu, the nation’s worst virus-hit region that accounts for around 64 percent of the total cases, with just two additional cases.
With its monthlong social distancing drive, South Korea avoided the worst-case scenario despite being one of the first countries hit hard by the virus that originated from China.
While health authorities remain wary of another wave of COVID-19 infections, the country is slowly moving to lift some of its social distancing regulations this week, giving the go-ahead for some facilities, including gyms.
The country, however, said overall social distancing is still in force until May 5, and it is considering moving toward so-called everyday life quarantine after the date if the number of cases continues to plateau. (Yonhap)