[Newsmaker] S. Korea reports another suspected case of bird flu, total now at 87

South Korea said Monday it is currently investigating yet another suspected case of highly pathogenic bird flu, with the country's total confirmed infections staying unchanged at 87. The latest suspected case of the deadly H5N8 strain of avian influenza was reported from an egg farm in Pocheon, 46 kilometers north of Seoul, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. The test result is expected to come out within three days. The farm was raising 160,000 chickens. Since l

Feb. 8, 2021

New virus cases at over 2-month low on fewer tests, infection slowdown

South Korea's daily coronavirus cases fell below 300 on Monday, marking the lowest number since last November, when a third wave of outbreaks began, as the nation started an eased social distancing scheme outside the greater Seoul area. The country added 289 more COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, including 264 local infections, raising the total caseload to 81,185, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. It marked the lowest daily infections since Nov. 23 last year, whe

Feb. 8, 2021

Seoul sees lowest traffic fatalities in 2020

The number of fatalities from traffic accidents in Seoul fell to its lowest recorded level last year, police said Sunday. According to the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, the number of people who died from traffic accidents reached 218 throughout 2020, down from 247 people from a year earlier. The number of traffic accident fatalities has been steadily falling from 399 deaths recorded in 2014. Pedestrians accounted for more than half, or 115, of all traffic accident deaths in Seoul recorded

Feb. 7, 2021

Eastar Jet founder's relative indicted for embezzlement

JEONJU -- A senior financial official of the troubled budget carrier Easter Jet has been indicted on charges of embezzlement and breach of trust, prosecutors said Sunday. The official, whose identity was withheld by the prosecution, is accused of underselling 5.2 million company shares owned by its affiliates to a specific subsidiary in 2015, which caused damage to the carrier, according to the Jeonju District Prosecutors Office. The shares were worth around 54 billion won ($48.06 million), bu

Feb. 7, 2021

Foreign minister says vaccine hoarding will lengthen pandemic

Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha said Friday that the hoarding of vaccines by a few countries would only undermine the public interest and lengthen the pandemic. “It is especially important to keep a distance from ‘vaccine nationalism’ and guarantee fair provision of vaccines to everyone at affordable costs,” Kang said during a congratulatory speech at a sustainable development forum hosted by Yonsei University. “We need to invest in bolstering the national health

Feb. 7, 2021

Food poisoning cases fall to record low

The number of food poisoning cases last year was the lowest ever recorded as the COVID-19 pandemic forced cafeterias to close and increased an emphasis on personal hygiene, data showed Sunday. According to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, the number of reported food poisoning cases reached 178, down 52 percent from five-year average of 343 cases since 2015. The number of food poisoning patients reached 53 per million, down 40 percent from an average of 133 patients per million from 2015 t

Feb. 7, 2021

New virus cases under 400 for 3rd day ahead of eased social distancing

South Korea's daily coronavirus cases were under 400 for the third consecutive day Sunday in the latest sign of a possible slowdown in the virus curve, with the country set to launch an eased social distancing scheme outside the greater Seoul area starting the next day. The country added 372 more COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, including 326 local infections, raising the cumulative caseload to 80,896, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. The country added 393 cases

Feb. 7, 2021

Ultrafine dust density falls to lowest for January

Last month's ultrafine dust density was the lowest for January since record keeping began in 2015, the environment ministry said Sunday. The average PM 2.5 reading across the country was 20 micrograms per cubic meter, down from 26 micrograms per cubic meter in January 2020, the ministry said, referring to a measure for ultrafine particles smaller than 2.5 micrometers in diameter. PM 2.5 dust particles are a class one carcinogen. There were 10 "good" ultrafine dust days in January, u

Feb. 7, 2021

S. Korea adds 393 new COVID-19 cases, govt. eases business curfew outside greater Seoul

South Korea's daily coronavirus cases stayed below 400 for the second consecutive day Saturday, while the government decided to relax a business curfew starting next week in most cities outside the greater Seoul area. The country added 393 more COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, including 366 local infections, raising the cumulative caseload to 80,524, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. Saturday's figure is higher than the 370 reported the previous day but lower tha

Feb. 6, 2021

Govt. to ease restriction on business operating hours outside greater Seoul area

The government said Saturday it will allow businesses outside the greater Seoul area to operate until 10 p.m. starting next week, relaxing the distancing rules amid growing discontent over the prolonged virus curbs. The revised measure will permit businesses like restaurants and fitness clubs to extend their operating hours by one hour under Level 2 distancing currently imposed on the provincial regions, Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said in a government response meeting. "After careful d

Feb. 6, 2021

7 foreigners deported for breaching quarantine rules

The Ministry of Justice said Thursday that seven foreigners had been deported from South Korea for breaking the country’s quarantine rules since November. Fourteen others were fined. One of the deportees was an Indonesian sailor who arrived at Incheon Airport on Dec. 17 and was instructed to enter a government-designated quarantine facility. But the man went into an airport restroom to change clothes and escaped in a taxi, the ministry said. The police arrested him a week later. A tota

Feb. 5, 2021

Seoul designates garbage discharge dates during Lunar New Year holiday

The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced Friday that it will implement the city’s comprehensive cleanup measures to help residents spend Lunar New Year‘s Day in a pleasant environment. To prevent inconvenience during the holiday period, the government plans to designate both discharging and collection dates of domestic waste, dividing the dates for different regions into three sections: before, during and after the Lunar New Year’s Day. Starting next week, from Monday to

Feb. 5, 2021

Police to invest in AI-based emergency support system

Artificial intelligence is on the way to help out police officers pinched for time, as they are overloaded with filing reports and handling disputes on the scene simultaneously. The National Police Agency said Thursday that it will invest some 7 billion won ($6.2 million) in government contributions to develop the AI-based 112 Emergency Decision Support System by 2024. Currently, the city and provincial police departments’ integrated situation rooms receive an average of 19 million 112 e

Feb. 5, 2021

How COVID-19 changed Seoul citizens’ lives

People living in Seoul spent more time sleeping and using media and less time working than usual during the coronavirus pandemic last year, a recent survey conducted by the Seoul city government showed.   　 According to the poll by the Seoul Metropolitan Government with 1,000 Seoul residents aged 18 to 69, those in Seoul worked five hours and 19 minutes on average a day in 2020, down 12 minutes from 2019.   　 As the nationwide social distancing campaign has kept people at home longe

Feb. 5, 2021

PM asks Koreans not to travel over Lunar New Year holiday

Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun on Friday called for continued caution against COVID-19, pointing out that the number of confirmed cases sharply increased in the US and the UK shortly after vaccinations began. South Koreans must stay vigilant despite high expectations for treatments and vaccines, Chung said. “We need to see the fact that confirmed cases rose sharply in the early stage of vaccinations in countries such as the US and UK,” the prime minister said as he presided over a m

Feb. 5, 2021

Court upholds sentence for importer who sold Chinese masks as S. Korean made

JEONJU -- An appellate court on Friday upheld an earlier prison sentence of a face mask importer convicted for bringing over Chinese mask products and selling them as South Korean-made products during the height of the pandemic last year to make unfair profits. The Jeonju District Court's appellate division sentenced the person, 49, to 18 months in prison for importing some 1.08 million units of face masks made in China and retailing some 11,000 of the items online after falsely labeling them

Feb. 5, 2021

S. Korea's COVID-19 cases exceed 80,000 amid tough virus curbs

South Korea surpassed a grim milestone in its battle against the coronavirus pandemic as its total COVID-19 caseload broke the 80,000 mark Friday. The country added 370 more COVID-19 cases, including 351 local infections, raising the total caseload to 80,131, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA). Daily infections fell from 467 on Wednesday and 451 on Tuesday after staying under 400 the three previous days. The KDCA said it will decide on whether to adjust the c

Feb. 5, 2021

S. Korea to receive 2.71m doses of COVID-19 vaccines via COVAX in H1

At least 2.71 million doses of coronavirus vaccines are expected to arrive in South Korea in the first half through an international vaccine procurement program, health authorities said Thursday. The country will receive 117,000 doses of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccines and 2.59 million doses of vaccines by AstraZeneca through the World Health Organization's global vaccine project, known as the COVAX Facility. The country with a 52 million population has secured access to coronavirus vaccines enough

Feb. 4, 2021

Could new variants dim Korea’s hope of having herd immunity by fall?

Korea’s plan of getting to herd immunity by fall could be complicated with the country reporting the first local outbreak involving new and potentially more transmissible variants. Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency’s deputy director Kwon Jun-wook on Thursday warned of the possibility of the variants making the situation worse. “From what we know, the variants are capable of spreading more easily,” he said. “If our commitment to social distancing w

Feb. 4, 2021

Mastermind of sexual abuse ring sentenced to additional 5 yrs in prison

The mastermind of an infamous Telegram sexual exploitation ring was sentenced to an additional five years in prison on Thursday for concealing profits from the crime for which had already been given a 40-year jail term last year. The Seoul Central District Court found Cho Ju-bin guilty of hiding some 108 million won ($96,500) of criminal proceeds by receiving cryptocurrency for the sexually exploitative materials he sold on the pay-to-view chat rooms on Telegram. The 25-year-old was also convi

Feb. 4, 2021