<Anchor> The number



of newly infected people with the Omicron mutant virus was the highest ever. In particular, as cases of unknown origin are coming from all over the country, there are likely to be more hidden Omicron infections, but there are voices that the third vaccination rate needs to be increased to prevent the spread.



This is a report by reporter Kim Deok-hyun.



<Reporter> On the



1st of last month, the first confirmed omicron mutation infection in Korea.



Since then, the spread continues to the family, acquaintances, and local communities of the infected. Yesterday (24th), there were 81 new infections of Omicron, the highest number ever.



The combined number of imported and domestic infections increased to 343.



Five of them came from Incheon, Daejeon, Jeonbuk, and Gwangju, but where they were infected has not been confirmed.



It can be assumed that there are many hidden Omicron infections.



In addition, the area where the Omicron infection appeared has spread to most of the country in 13 cities and provinces so far.



The government predicts that omicrons, which are more radioactive than delta mutations, will become the dominant species within a month or two.



It is our judgment that the third vaccination is important to prevent the spread of this epidemic.



[Park Young-Jun/Bang Dae-Bon Epidemiological Investigation Team Leader (last 20 days): There is a recently reported British data for Omicron. It is reported that when the third dose is given, the effectiveness of preventing infection rises to 80%.]



The third dose, which started last October, has been completed by 29% of the population.



On the 17th, more than 1 million people participated in the third vaccination, but it is the key to raising the speed of vaccination as much as countries that started the third vaccination first, such as Israel and the United Kingdom.



Until then, the government is planning to reduce the spread of Omicron in Korea as much as possible by actively using PCR reagents that can check whether Omicron is infected within 3 to 4 hours of the test.



(Video editing: Hongmyeong Lee)