<Anchor>
Today (25th), the number of new corona cases is expected to reach 300,000.
The spread seems to have slowed somewhat, but the death toll is rising.
Yesterday, nearly 500 people died, a record high.
This is reporter Jeong Da-eun.
<Reporter>
As of yesterday, the average daily number of confirmed cases for the past week was 367,464.
It has been declining since last Saturday.
After this weekend, I thought we would know for sure if there was a return to the downward trend.
[Lee Sang-won / Head of Epidemiological Investigation and Analysis Team, Central Quarantine Countermeasures Headquarters: Currently, the Omicron epidemic has reached its peak, and the number of patients has not increased compared to last week or last week.]
The daily death toll is 470, the highest ever.
94% of deaths were among those aged 60 and over, accounting for 18% of new cases.
Those in their 80s or older accounted for the most at 67%, followed by those in their 70s with 20%.
Experts are generally predicting that the death toll will rise significantly.
The current death toll is the result of the situation three weeks ago, when there were 200,000 confirmed cases a day.
An increase in the number of cases leads to an increase in the number of deaths because it usually takes three weeks.
[Kim Woo-joo/Professor of Infectious Diseases, Korea University Guro Hospital: In the next 1-2 weeks, the current number of 470 people can more than double.
That 900 or 1,000 people can be counted as dead in one day...
.]
The government emphasized that the cumulative fatality rate since the corona came into Korea is still low at 0.13%.
In addition, it was estimated that the number of deaths due to other serious underlying diseases in the confirmed state of Corona may have increased.
However, it was not disclosed how many people were killed.
There have also been pointed out whether the proportion of deaths due to the corona itself is intentionally lowered.