SEOUL, Dec. 13, 2020 (BSS/Xinhua) – South Korea reported 1,030 more daily cases of COVID-19 as of midnight Saturday, raising the total number of infections to 42,766.
It was the highest daily caseload since the first confirmed case was reported here on Jan. 20, topping 1,000 for the first time.
The daily number of infections grew in triple digits for 36 days since Nov. 8 due to small cluster infections in Seoul and its surrounding Gyeonggi province as well as imported cases.
The recent cluster infections were traceable to church services, nursing homes, private cram schools and restaurants as well as gatherings among families and acquaintances.
Of the new cases, 396 were Seoul residents and 328 were people residing in Gyeonggi province. Twenty-eight were imported from overseas, lifting the combined figure to 4,892.
Two more deaths were confirmed, leaving the death toll at 580. The total fatality rate stood at 1.36 percent.
A total of 321 more patients were discharged from quarantine after making full recovery, pulling up the combined number to 31,814. The total recovery rate was 74.39 percent.
Since Jan. 3, the country has tested more than 3.37 million people, among whom 3,241,700 tested negative for the virus and 90,129 are being checked.