South Korea mulls stricter measures as virus spreads

SEOUL, Korea, Republic Of - South Korea has reported 332 new cases of the coronavirus, its ninth straight day of triple-digit increases, as government officials mull unprecedented economic restrictions to slow a resurgence that threatens to ruin what had been heralded as a rare success story against the virus.

Saturday was the second consecutive day the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported a daily jump of over 300, pushing the nine-day total to 2,232. The national caseload is now at 17,002, including 309 deaths.

While most of the new cases came from the densely populated Seoul metropolitan area, which has been at the centre of the viral surge in recent weeks, infections were also reported in practically every major city and town, raising concerns that transmissions are slipping out of control.

Churches had been a major source of new cases in the Seoul area before authorities shut them this week while raising social distancing restrictions, something they had resisted for months out of economic concerns. Nightclubs, karaoke bars, buffet restaurants and computer gaming cafes in the greater capital region have also closed, and spectators have been banned again from baseball and soccer games.

During a virus briefing Saturday, Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said the government is considering expanding such measures nationwide as health workers struggle to track transmissions and predict infection routes.

KCDC Director Jeong Eun-kyeong has endorsed even stronger restrictions. If there's no sign that the virus spread is slowing after the weekend, she said the country should consider elevating social distancing measures to “Level 3,” which includes prohibiting gatherings of more than 10 people, shutting schools, halting professional sports and advising private companies to have employees work from home.

As of Friday afternoon, more than 700 infections have been linked to a Seoul church led by a vocal critic of the country's president. Sarang Jeil Church pastor Jun Kwang-hun was hospitalized with COVID-19 on Monday after participating in an anti-government protest last week where he shared a microphone on stage with other activists.

Police raided the church late Friday while trying to secure a more comprehensive list of its members who remain out of contact. Health workers have used mobile phone location data to identify some 15,000 people who spent more than 30 minutes on the street during the protest last Saturday and have been alerting them to get tested.

In other developments in the Asia-Pacific region:

- New cases of COVID-19 in Australia's Victoria state continued to decline Saturday with 182 new infections, along with 13 deaths. It was the second day in a row in which the number of new infections has fallen below 200. Only 24 of the latest cases are without a known source, a contrast to the start of August when hundreds could not be traced. Australia's second largest city, Melbourne, and parts of rural Victoria were placed in full lockdown in early August. It's due to continue until Sept. 13. “Whilst tomorrow's numbers will be for tomorrow, we are all pleased to see a `one' in front of these additional case numbers, and to a certain extent, it is perhaps at that level a little quicker than I thought it might be,” Victoria Premier Daniel Andrews said. Meanwhile, an outbreak linked to a youth detention centre in Queensland state has caused the state's premier to reintroduce restrictions on public gatherings. The cluster connected to the Brisbane Youth Detention Center now stands at seven, including six confirmed on Saturday. The 127 inmates, some as young as 13, have been locked in their rooms since a 77-year-old female supervisor tested positive on Wednesday. The worker, who is now in a hospital, worked five shifts at the centre while infectious. Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk told a news conference Saturday the cases are of concern because “people have been out and about in the community.”

- China on Saturday reported another 22 new cases brought by travellers from abroad, with no additional local infections. The National Health Commission said 454 people remain in treatment and 3,667 are in isolation. While local spread of the virus appears to have been contained in mainland China, the semi-autonomous southern city of Hong Kong continues to struggle with its worst outbreak since the pandemic began. The territory's leader Carrie Lam said Friday Hong Kong will offer free coronavirus tests to its residents over a period of two weeks starting Sept. 1., in hopes of restarting the services-dependent local economy. The city's economy contracted 9% in the second quarter of this year. A new surge in infections has more than tripled the number of cases in the city to 4,632, with 75 deaths.