As the rapid spread of Corona 19 in Korea has waned, the daily increase in new confirmed cases in the metropolitan area is also gradually decreasing.
However, with sporadic infections large and small everywhere, and the proportion of patients who are not sure when and how they were infected, there are concerns that the Corona 19 epidemic could spread further at any time.
According to the Central Defense Response Headquarters (Bangdaebon) today (16th), the cumulative confirmed cases in the metropolitan area as of today's 0 o'clock are 9,644, approaching 10,000.
By region, 4,794 in Seoul, 3,998 in Gyeonggi, and 852 in Incheon.
In the metropolitan area, the number of confirmed cases has increased significantly since the middle of last month, when the outbreak of COVID-19 began in earnest.
The number of new confirmed cases in the metropolitan area continued to increase by three digits for nearly three weeks since August 15, as the number of infection cases continued, centering on religious facilities including Sarangjeil Church in Seongbuk-gu, Seoul, and public assembly in the Liberation Day city center. There were also new confirmed cases.
Accordingly, the number of cumulative confirmed cases in the metropolitan area reached 7,200 on the 28th of last month, exceeding Daegu (cumulative 7,7), the center of the first pandemic.
In this month, the increase in confirmed cases has slowed compared to before, but the average of 60 to 80 per day is rising and falling.
In fact, the number of confirmed cases in the metropolitan area, combined with local outbreaks and overseas inflows (excluding quarantine), was 90, 66, 81, 80 and 86 in the last five days (12-16 days), with an average of 81 cases occurring per day.
According to the current trend, the number of cumulative confirmed cases in the metropolitan area is expected to exceed 10,000 at the end of this week or early next week.
Kim Woo-joo, a professor of infectious medicine at Korea University's Guro Hospital, said on a recent YouTube channel, "The cumulative number of confirmed cases in the metropolitan area will soon exceed 10,000". "Recently, although the incidence of confirmed cases has declined markedly, when the number of confirmed cases was less than 50 in June to July. There is a distance from him."
The quarantine authorities are focusing on blocking the spread of the metropolitan area, but the situation is not so easy.
Most of all, the number of'unknown infection routes' cases that do not know when, where and how they were infected is a huge burden for quarantine authorities.
Of the 2,55 new confirmed cases identified by the quarantine authorities for the last two weeks from the 3rd of this month to today, 522 cases are being investigated, accounting for 25.4%.
This means that 1 in 4 new cases do not know the route of infection.
Yesterday, this rate peaked at 25.0% (552 out of 2,209), but it broke in a day.
It is also a problem that Corona 19 penetrates everywhere, regardless of location and type, such as religious facilities, workplaces, small groups, and large hospitals.
In recent major infection cases, small and medium-sized companies related to a cafe in the metropolitan area (cumulative 47), Severance Hospital in Seodaemun-gu, Seoul (accumulated 32), and day care center in Icheon-si, Gyeonggi-do (cumulative 20) and Woori Church in Songpa-gu (11 cumulative). Scale infections are one after another.
Eom Jung-sik, a professor of infectious medicine at Gachon University Gil Hospital, said, "It is a problem that the number of new confirmed cases is not decreasing than expected in the metropolitan area. It is also serious that there are still many people who are not sure of the transmission route of infection."
Professor Eom emphasized, "If it becomes loose in terms of quarantine, the number of confirmed patients will increase before and after the Chuseok holiday," he said. "It is most important to strictly follow the quarantine rules required by the current second-stage social distancing."
(Photo = Provided by the Central Defense Agency, Yonhap News)