S. Korea mulls tougher anti-coronavirus curbs as cases spike

Yonhap via The Korea Herald/Asia News Network

SEOUL — South Korea will consider imposing tougher virus containment measures and movement restrictions, as the nation is battling its worst virus crisis in about four months, the health minister said Tuesday.

Health Minister Park Neung-hoo said the government will take legal measures unless patients comply with self-quarantine rules.

“Health authorities will review stepped-up measures because the current situation is grave,” Park said.

South Korea reported 246 more cases of the new coronavirus Tuesday as it struggles to contain sporadic outbreaks in Seoul and the neighboring area amid growing fears of a resurgence in the greater Seoul area.

It marked a three-digit number for the fifth straight day. Over the past five days, the number of newly confirmed patients stood at 991.

Infections linked to religious activities in Seoul and the neighboring area have caused secondary transmissions in other regions, Park said.

“At this stage, the most important thing is a swift testing,” Park said.

With the number of patients jumping in the greater capital area, there are concerns over a possible shortage in hospital beds.

Health authorities have been making preparations to supply more hospital beds for patients in critical conditions, Park said.

Alarmed by a resurgence of infections in recent days, the government raised the level of social distancing in Seoul and the neighboring areas by one notch to Level 2 in the three-tier system for two weeks from Sunday.

But health authorities are concerned about further spread of the virus out of the capital area.

Jeong Eun-kyeong, head of the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said Monday that the virus clusters linked to religious activities have spread around the nation “at a terrific speed.”

Health authorities assessed that the current situation is in an “early stage of large-scale community outbreaks,” Jeong said. Yonhap