South Korean Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said the coronavirus virus situation has become critical with a surge in cases overwhelming hospital capacities and exhausting medical workers, forcing a further tightening of measures.
There were 7,622 new cases reported by the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency on Thursday, close to the daily record of 7,850 set a day earlier. That brought the national caseload to 544,117, with nearly 97,000 added in December alone.
