Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

People hold for the coronavirus investigating astatine a nationalist wellness halfway successful Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, Dec. 9, 2021. New coronavirus infections successful South Korea person been rising and breaking records daily. There were agelong lines astatine investigating stations aft they exceeded 7,000 for the archetypal clip connected Wednesday since the commencement of the pandemic. More than 5,600 of the caller 7,175 cases were reported successful Seoul and the adjacent metropolitan region. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

SEOUL – New coronavirus infections successful South Korea exceeded 7,000 for the 3rd consecutive time connected Friday successful a record-breaking surge that has crushed hospitals and threatens the country’s goals to upwind the pandemic without lockdowns.

Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said during a microorganism gathering that the state could beryllium forced to instrumentality “extraordinary” measures if the microorganism doesn’t dilatory soon. Officials issued administrative orders requiring hospitals astir the state to designate 2,000 much beds combined for COVID-19 treatment.

Kim said the authorities volition besides velocity up the medication of booster shots by shortening the interval betwixt the 2nd and 3rd vaccine injections from the existent 4 oregon 5 months to 3 months starting adjacent week.

Around 41.5 cardinal people, oregon 81% of the colonisation of implicit 51 million, person been afloat vaccinated, but lone 10% person received booster shots.

The delta-driven dispersed successful caller weeks has been accompanied by a spike successful hospitalizations and deaths, galore among radical successful their 60s oregon older whose immunities person waned aft being inoculated aboriginal successful the vaccine rollout that began successful February.

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Officials tightened restrictions starting Monday, banning backstage societal gatherings of 7 oregon much radical successful the greater superior country and requiring adults to verify their vaccination presumption astatine restaurants and different indoor venues. But Kim said specified measures haven’t yet showed an effect successful slowing transmissions.

“If it becomes wide that we aren’t succeeding successful reversing this situation concern wrong the adjacent fewer days, the authorities volition person nary different prime but to employment bonzer anti-virus measures, including beardown societal distancing,” said Kim, South Korea’s No. 2 down President Moon Jae-in.

Deputy Health Minister Lee Ki-il said officials whitethorn further trim the bounds connected societal gatherings and reconstruct business-hour restrictions astatine restaurants and bars that were lifted successful November if things proceed to look atrocious adjacent week.

“We volition effort our champion to debar a lockdown,” Lee said during a briefing.

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The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said astir 5,300 of the 7,022 caller cases reported Friday were from superior Seoul and the adjacent metropolitan area, wherever the microorganism has deed hardest. The country’s decease toll is present astatine 4,130 aft 53 microorganism patients died successful the past 24 hours, portion 852 others were successful superior oregon captious conditions.

South Korea has besides tightened its borders to fend disconnected the caller omicron variant since identifying its archetypal cases past week that were linked to arrivals from Nigeria. The KDCA said wellness workers confirmed 3 much omicron infections connected Friday, bringing the tally to 63.

Scientists accidental it's not yet wide whether omicron is much contagious oregon unsafe than erstwhile strains of the virus.

Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This worldly whitethorn not beryllium published, broadcast, rewritten oregon redistributed without permission.