Coronavirus: Daegu mayor hopes spread of infection has slowed as South Korea total hits 7,313
- South Korea has conducted one of the most ambitious coronavirus testing programmes in the world, with thousands of people being tested every day
- Facing shortages of face masks, the government will impose a rationing system to limit the number of masks each person can buy each week
The increase in cases was lower than the same period a day before, though health officials have warned that numbers could fluctuate as more tests are processed.
In the city of Daegu, which accounts for as much as 75 per cent of all of South Korea’s confirmed cases, mayor Kwon Young-jin told reporters the number of new cases has dropped below 300 for the first time since February 29, Yonhap news agency reported.
“The increase in the number of infection cases is showing signs of slowing down,” he said, according to Yonhap.
Daegu and two neighbouring areas have been declared “special care zones” by the government, which has sent extra medical supplies and staff and deployed military troops to disinfect the streets.
“We put the Shincheonji church followers in quarantine to prevent the further spread of and tested them, and many of confirmed cases came from them,” she told reporters during a briefing in Seoul. “The testing of the church followers is almost finished, so the number of confirmed cases has dropped accordingly.”