(2nd LD) New infections rebound to over 50,000 amid 'twindemic' woes

(ATTN: UPDATES with latest figures in 6th para; CHANGES headline)

SEOUL, Sept. 13 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's new COVID-19 cases bounced back to surpass 50,000 on Tuesday after reporting a steady decline last week.

The country reported 57,309 new COVID-19 infections, including 272 cases from overseas, bringing the total caseload to 24,099,134, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said.

Tuesday's tally is up by more than 20,000 from 36,938 a day earlier. Daily infections have slowed after peaking at around 180,000 in mid-August in the latest virus resurgence.

The country added 35 COVID-19 deaths, raising the death toll to 27,533. The fatality rate stood at 0.11 percent.

The number of critically ill patients stood at 547, down by 6 from the previous day.

As of 9 p.m., the country had reported 91,239 additional cases, up 36,508 from the same time the previous day and 8,995 higher than the number from a week ago. Daily cases are counted until midnight and announced the following morning.

Health authorities said new infection numbers have been on a decline for the past week and continue the downward trend for the time being.

But the government warned of a possible "twindemic" -- a simultaneous outbreak of COVID-19 and the seasonal influenza -- as early as this fall amid an unusual spike in the number of flu patients since July this year.

The public health agency said 4.7 among 1,000 patients who visited the hospital from Aug. 23 to Sept. 3 showed influenza-like symptoms. The figure is the highest for the same seven-day period in the last five years.

The KDCA said it is considering introducing a polymerase chain reaction test that can detect both COVID-19 and the flu at the same time.

fairydust@yna.co.kr
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