Coronavirus: South Korea’s surge raises prospect of stricter curbs
- South Korea, once regarded as a success story in containing the virus, has recorded almost 4,000 new cases in the past two weeks
- Parliament was shut down and lawmakers went into self- quarantine on Thursday as the nation reported its largest daily increase in cases since March
Of the new cases, 434 were locally transmitted, prompting authorities to consider increasing restrictions beyond current social distancing rules.
“The virus is spreading across the country including the metropolitan area and other provincial cities with increasing intensity and at various facilities,” Yoon Tae-ho, a senior health ministry official, said on Thursday.
Heath officials have lamented that people have continued going out in public, noting that transport activity in the Seoul area declined by only 20 per cent last weekend.
On Thursday, the government urged businesses to have employees work from home.
The recent surge in cases has placed the country’s health care system under additional strain. Exhausted staff have been stretched to their limit and some medical facilities have been closed after employees or patients tested positive.