LOC11:02
08:02 GMT
TOKYO, Feb 27 (KUNA) -- South Korea reported another daily spike in the number of new infections of the new coronavirus on Thursday, with the number of new cases expected to accelerate as virus tests started on over 210,000 members of a religious sect, Yonhap News Agency reported.
The whopping 334 new cases took the nation's total infections to 1,595, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. A 74-year-old virus patient who is tied to the religious sect in the southeastern city of Daegu died of respiratory failure earlier in the day, bringing the nation's death toll to 13.
Of the 334 new cases, 307 are in Daegu, 300 km southeast of Seoul, and four are in neighboring North Gyeongsang Province. The number of total infections in Daegu and North Gyeongsang stood at 1,017 and 321, respectively.
In an alarming sign that the novel coronavirus is spreading more widely in South Korea, the total number of cases in the capital of Seoul and Busan, the second-largest city, rose to 55 and 58, respectively.
Experts said the number of confirmed cases is expected to jump in the coming days as health authorities began testing more than 210,000 members of the Shincheonji Church of Jesus at the center of the rapid spread in other provinces.
South Korea confirmed its first new coronavirus case from a Chinese woman from Wuhan, the epicenter of the virus outbreak, on Jan. 20, but the pace of infections had not been alarming until Feb. 18, when a 61-year-old woman who is tied to the Daegu branch of Shincheonji tested positive for the virus. (end)
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