S. Korea's new COVID-19 cases fall below 40,000 amid 'twindemic' worries

SEOUL, Nov. 6 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's new coronavirus cases fell below 40,000 on Sunday amid concerns over a possible outbreak of a "twindemic" of COVID-19 and seasonal influenza during the winter.

The country reported 36,675 new COVID-19 infections, including 66 from overseas, bringing the total to 25,838,239, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said.

Daily infections jumped to 58,363 on Nov. 1 from 18,504 a day earlier but have been on the decline. The daily caseload stayed above 40,000 in the past three days amid the twindemic worries.

The country added 18 deaths from COVID-19, bringing the death toll to 29,372. The number of critically ill patients stood at 346, up from 314 a day earlier, the KDCA said.

Health authorities remain on alert over a possible resurgence of the pandemic this winter.

On Friday, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo said the number of daily infections could reach up to 200,000 cases due to the possible arrival of new COVID-19 variants.

The government has recently expanded booster shots against omicron variants to all people aged over 18 amid concerns about the risks of a simultaneous outbreak of COVID-19 and the seasonal flu.

kyongae.choi@yna.co.kr
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