Daily cases jump to over 5,000 for 1st time in 20 days amid omicron woes

SEOUL, Jan. 19 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's daily coronavirus cases jumped to over 5,000 for the first time in 20 days Wednesday amid growing concerns over the spread of the omicron virus variant ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday.

The country added 5,805 new COVID-19 infections, including 5,431 local infections, raising the total caseload to 705,902, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).

The daily caseload had stayed below 5,000 since Dec. 30, when it stood at 5,034.

The number of critically ill COVID-19 patients stood at 532 on Wednesday. The country reported 74 COVID-19 deaths, raising the death toll to 6,452. The fatality rate was 0.91 percent.

The number of imported cases was tallied at 374, bringing the total imported cases to 22,304.

kyongae.choi@yna.co.kr
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