(LEAD) Daegu reports another cluster infection at hospital

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SEOUL, March 27 (Yonhap) -- A new cluster of novel coronavirus infections has been reported at a hospital in the southeastern city of Daegu that shared a building with a virus-hit nursing home, the local health agency said Friday.

A total of 52 people, including 50 patients, at the general hospital have tested positive for COVID-19, according to officials from Daegu, the epicenter of the outbreak here.

Three showed symptoms last week, with one of them testing positive

Authorities said 49 others from the hospital are awaiting their virus test results, raising concerns that more cases may be confirmed.

The new cluster of infections came after Daesil Nursing Hospital, located on different floors of the same building, reported mass infections last week. As of Friday, there were 90 cases reported from the nursing hospital.

The number of new infections in the city remained in double digits for the 16th consecutive day as of Thursday, but Daegu has been struggling to contain cluster infections at nursing homes and hospitals.

At least three other hospitals in the city also have reported cluster infections so far.

South Korea detected 91 new cases of the novel coronavirus Thursday, down from 104 new cases a day earlier.

Of the 9,332 coronavirus infections confirmed since mid-January, nearly 70 percent have been reported in Daegu, which has a population of 2.5 million and is country's fourth-largest city.

colin@yna.co.kr
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