Asia Today: S. Korea reports record surge, ramps up testing

South Korea has reported its largest daily increase in coronavirus infections on Christmas Day, as the prime minister pleaded for vigilance to arrest a viral surge that has worsened hospitalization and deaths

vCard QR Code

vCard.red is a free platform for creating a mobile-friendly digital business cards. You can easily create a vCard and generate a QR code for it, allowing others to scan and save your contact details instantly.

The platform allows you to display contact information, social media links, services, and products all in one shareable link. Optional features include appointment scheduling, WhatsApp-based storefronts, media galleries, and custom design options.

The 1,241 new cases confirmed by the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency on Friday brought the country’s caseload to 54,770. Seventeen COVID-19 patients died in the past 24 hours, bringing the death toll to 773.

More than 870 of the new cases were from the greater capital area, home to half of the country’s 51 million population, where nearly 300 infections so far have been linked to a huge prison in Seoul. Clusters have been popping up from just about everywhere in recent weeks, including hospitals, long-term care facilities, churches, restaurants and army units.

The country has been expanding its mass testing program to slow the rate of transmissions and more than 118,000 tests were conducted on Thursday alone. Officials are also clamping down on private gatherings through Jan. 3, shutting down national parks and ski resorts and setting fines for restaurants if they receive groups of five people or more.

———

Follow AP’s coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic, https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-vaccine and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak

source: abcnews.go.com


🕐 Top News in the Last Hour By Importance Score

# Title 📊 i-Score
1 SpaceX launches 10th batch of 'proliferated architecture' spy satellites for US government (video) 🟢 85 / 100
2 NY Gov. says congestion pricing will remain despite federal deadline to end the program Sunday 🟢 82 / 100
3 No plans to extend Easter ceasefire in Ukraine, Putin says – as Zelensky accuses Russia of breaching the temporary truce more than 2,000 TIMES 🔴 78 / 100
4 US citizen wrongfully arrested by border patrol in Arizona held for nearly 10 days 🔴 75 / 100
5 In Nigeria’s floating slum, ‘The Herds’ tour spotlights climate change where it's felt the most 🔴 72 / 100
6 DHL suspends high value US deliveries over tariffs 🔴 65 / 100
7 Musk's Doge set sights on iconic landmark as brutal 'assault on institutions' continues 🔴 65 / 100
8 Subaru Solterra EV Debuts Divisive Look for 2026 Model Year 🔵 55 / 100
9 Jim Davidson shares astonishing comment made by police during Operation Yewtree enquiry 🔵 55 / 100
10 I Cut My Streaming Bill in Half and Still Watched Everything I Wanted 🔵 45 / 100

View More Top News ➡️