New COVID-19 cases surge to 18-week high of over 180,000
SEOUL, Aug. 17 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's new COVID-19 cases surged to an 18-week high of about 180,000 on Wednesday amid a new resurgence of the virus, a government official said.
The number of seriously ill COVID-19 patients came to 469 with the daily death toll reaching 42, Kim Sung-ho, the head of the interior ministry's disaster management office, said during a government COVID-19 response meeting.
"An increase in travelers in the summer vacation season and the recent extended Liberation Day holiday is expected to have an impact (on infection tallies) this week," Kim said.
The Wednesday tally marks a more than twofold increase from Tuesday's 84,128 cases.
This photo provided by a district office in the city of Gwangju on Aug. 16, 2022, shows COVID-19 test samples at a public health center (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
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