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Today (9th), the number of new corona cases is expected to be around 7,000. The rate of diffusion is too fast. As of yesterday, the number of patients with severe severe cases also recorded an all-time high of 840.



Reporter Jeong Da-eun reports.



<Reporter> On the



day the first 7,000 confirmed cases a day in history, testers continued to visit screening clinics across the country.



The number of confirmed cases increased by more than 2,000 in one day from 4,954 the previous day, a 40% increase from 5,122 on the same day last week.



This is a much faster rate of increase than the government initially expected.



The main infected are children and adolescents who have not been vaccinated and the elderly over the age of 60, where breakthrough infection occurs due to the ineffectiveness of the vaccine.



[Kim Bu-gyeom/Prime Minister: 35% of all confirmed cases and 84% of severe cases are over 60 years old. Schools and families are threatened by the rapidly increasing number of youth infections.] The



main cause is the rapid increase in personal gatherings and social activities from all walks of life after the gradual recovery of daily life on the 1st of last month.



There were also 840 cases of severe gastritis, a record high.



In the metropolitan area, there are 860 people waiting for more than one day, and the beds are virtually saturated.



The number of deaths while waiting for a hospital bed also reached 29 in the last five weeks.



The government has designated two additional hospitals exclusively for treatment of COVID-19 patients, but it is expected to take time to expand the beds.



[Kim Byeong-gwan / Director of Hyemin Hospital: Up to 22 beds for critically ill, about 20 for semi-severe patients, and more than 100 beds for moderately ill patients.

On the 27th, the entire hospital is expected to be transformed into a hospital where corona patients can be seen.] The



quarantine authorities said, "Currently, it can withstand up to 10,000 confirmed cases a day, but if it exceeds that, additional medical adjustments are necessary." .