S Korea raises alert on pandemic
SOUTH Korea decided to raise its alert over the coronavirus to its highest level, President Moon Jae-in announced yesterday, after the country reported over 150 new cases of the virus.
Moon said the government would strengthen its overall emergency response as part of declaring the “red” alert level, and that local authorities should take “unprecedented, powerful” measures to contain the coronavirus, according to South Korea’s Yonhap news agency.
Meanwhile, Chinese health authorities reported 648 new cases and 97 new deaths, bringing the total number of infections nationwide to 76 936 while fatalities rose to 2442.
In South Korea, Prime Minister Chung Sye Kyun on Friday promised “strong and swift” measures to prevent the virus from spreading further, including designating Daegu and Cheongdo as “special care zones,” according to news agency Yonhap.
Daegu’s 2.5 million residents on Thursday were advised to stay at home by mayor Kwon Young Jin in order to slow the spread of the coronavirus.
Authorities said cases were also reported in the capital Seoul, the central south-west province of Chungcheong and on Jeju Island.
Of the new confirmed cases, 75 were linked with the church according to the KCDC. The South Korean outbreak, mainly involving the cities of Daegu and Cheongdo in North Gyeongsang province, led the US to raise its travel advisory for the country, advising citizens travelling to the country to exercise increased caution.
Japan’s Health Ministry said yesterday that a Japanese man in his 80s who was on the cruise ship had died from pneumonia, the third death among those who were on the vessel.
The ministry declined to say whether the man tested positive for the Covid-19 illness. On Thursday, two Japanese passengers - an 87-year-old man and an 84-year-old woman - died from the Covid-19 disease.
Health Minister Katsunobu Kato said late Saturday that his ministry had failed to test 23 Princess Diamond passengers before they disembarked from the ship.
On Sunday, a third government-chartered flight brought passengers back to Hong Kong from the cruise ship.
The flight contained five passengers from the ship together with government officials tasked with the logistics of working with Japanese officials to clear them for travel. They will now be put in a further 14-day quarantine, according to local broadcaster Radio Television Hong Kong.
Tens of millions of people remain on lockdown across China as the government attempts to stop the spread of the virus.