[Herald Interview] Can Korea’s surveillance keep up with omicron?

Korea needs to reinforce its COVID-19 testing capacity if the country is to keep tabs on the omicron variant, Dr. Hong Kiho, a laboratory medicine professor at Severance Hospital in Seoul, said in a phone interview. Hong called for enhancing testing, as clinics continue to deal with the surge propelled by the Nov. 1 return to normal. Some sites in the Seoul area have reported a wait time of an hour to several hours for a test. The spike in testing demand is mainly attributable to the overall

Dec. 20, 2021

Demanding to be heard, disability groups disrupt rush-hour trains

An association of civic groups in South Korea stepped up actions in their campaign to raise awareness for the mobility rights of the disabled, staging simultaneous rallies at subway stations during the morning rush hour. From around 7 a.m. Monday, scores of activists and disabled persons affiliated with the Solidarity against Disability Discrimination showed up at four stations -- Gwanghwamun, Wangsimni, Yeouido and Haengdang -- all on Line No. 5. Some people in wheelchairs deliberately put

Dec. 20, 2021

[Newsmaker] S. Korea to add hospital beds, medical workers and testing centers to counter COVID-19 surge

President Moon Jae-in on Monday ordered the government to secure additional COVID-19 hospital beds, health care workers and testing centers to counter the growing numbers of COVID-19 cases. “The government will take extraordinary measures to secure enough medical capacity” to counter the resurgence of cases, Moon said in a statement released by Cheong Wa Dae. Moon also ordered concerned government agencies to designate additional public hospitals for exclusive care of COVID-19 pati

Dec. 20, 2021

Spy agency warns of possible terrorist attacks during holiday season

South Korea's state intelligence agency on Monday warned of possible terrorist attacks during the upcoming year-end holiday season, stressing that terrorism is increasingly becoming an "actually existing threat" in the country. The National Intelligence Service (NIS) said anti-vaccine protests in Europe and other countries could turn violent or become a target for a terrorist attack, and South Korea is no longer free from such threats. A total of 489 materials instigating or propagan

Dec. 20, 2021

7 in 10 Koreans support stricter social distancing measures: poll

Slightly over 70 percent of South Koreans approve of toughened social distancing measures to stem the resurgence of COVID-19, a poll showed Monday. In the poll of 1,000 adults nationwide organized by multiple civic groups, 71.3 percent supported the government's decision to halt the "living with COVID-19" scheme this past Saturday for two weeks and restore stricter social distancing measures. Under the new policy, the maximum number of people at private gatherings was reduced to four

Dec. 20, 2021

Ex-President Park to stay in hospital until early next year

Former President Park Geun-hye, currently serving a 22-year prison term for corruption, will stay in hospital until February for multiple illnesses, the justice ministry said Monday. When admitted to a hospital in southern Seoul on Nov. 22, Park had planned to stay there for about a month, but doctors now say that she needs at least six more weeks for treatment of back, shoulder and other ailments, according to the ministry. This year, the 69-year-old Park was hospitalized three times due to

Dec. 20, 2021

Infant found dead inside clothing donation bin

Police are investigating the death of an infant found inside a clothing donation bin in Osan, Gyeonggi Province, on Sunday night. The baby was found by the bin’s operator at around 11:30 p.m. Naked, the infant was wrapped with a towel, with the umbilical cord unclamped. “It appears the baby had been just born,” a police officer investigating the case was quoted as saying by local media. The police are looking into surveillance footage installed nearby in order to identify

Dec. 20, 2021

2 equestrian horses caught on Incheon overpass after being loose for hours

INCHEON -- Two equestrian horses that had escaped from their stable in Incheon were caught on a nearby overpass Monday after being on the loose apparently for hours, police said. Police said they received a sighting report of the two horses roaming free on the overpass in Namdong Ward of Incheon, 40 kilometers west of Seoul, at around 5:30 a.m. apparently headed toward a nearby highway. Authorities closed off part of the overpass and captured the horses after about two hours. The horses report

Dec. 20, 2021

New COVID-19 cases below 6,000 for 1st time in 6 days but almost 1,000 new critically ill patients

South Korea's new coronavirus cases fell below 6,000 for the first time in six days Monday due partly to less testing over the weekend, but the number of new critically ill patients was at almost 1,000. The country added 5,318 more COVID-19 cases, including 5,258 local infections, bringing the cumulative total to 570,414, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. The number of new critically ill patients came to 997, slightly down from an all-time high of 1,025 on Sunday and

Dec. 20, 2021

Omicron, a pandemic silver lining?

Omicron is by far the most heavily mutated variant of COVID-19 to date, and on course to dethrone delta as the dominant strain. Since the strain was first detected in Korea on Dec. 1, the variant has been found in over 160 cases here. Of them, 39 have recent travel history and the rest are close or indirect contacts. Community transmission, public health authorities say, is probably already underway. To understand the implications of the newest variant, too nascent to be able to grasp the f

Dec. 19, 2021

Ministry reveals names of non-custodial parents rejecting child support

The government on Sunday released the personal details of two non-custodial parents who have failed to pay child support for the first time since a related law revision came into effect in July. The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family said it has disclosed the personal information of two separate obligors of child support who failed to provide the expenses ordered by the court, on its website. According to the ministry, one obligor did not provide 65.2 million won ($55,543) of accumulated

Dec. 19, 2021

S. Korea’s critical COVID-19 cases hit fresh high

The number of critically ill patients with COVID-19 in South Korea hit an all-time high Saturday, the government announced the same day. The increasing number of critical COVID-19 cases continues to overwhelm the country’s medical capacity. The number of critical COVID-19 cases reached 1,025 as of midnight Saturday, surpassing the previous high of 1,000 reported just the previous day, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency. The number of hospital beds for COVID-19

Dec. 19, 2021

Schools in capital area to resume remote learning over hike in coronavirus

Schools in the capital area will resume remote learning this week as part of a government campaign aimed at stemming the fast spread of the coronavirus, officials said Sunday. Under the latest rules, schools in the capital area and overly crowded schools in other parts of the country will roll back fully in-person classes and reintroduce a mix of in-person and virtual classes starting Monday. Middle and high schools will be able to run at two-thirds capacity, while third- to sixth-grade elemen

Dec. 19, 2021

New COVID-19 cases below 7,000 for 1st time in five days, critical cases at fresh high

South Korea's new coronavirus cases fell below 7,000 for the first time in five days Sunday, but critical cases surged to a record high as the government reimposed restrictions to contain the fast spread of the virus. The country added 6,236 more COVID-19 cases, including 6,173 local infections, bringing the cumulative total to 565,098, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said. Sunday's tally is slightly down from the previous day's 7,313 and the record high of 7,850 repor

Dec. 19, 2021

Heavy snow advisory issued for Seoul, western area of capital

South Korea issued a heavy snow advisory in the greater Seoul area for the first time this winter, the weather agency said Saturday. The Korea Meteorological Administration said the advisory went into effect in Seoul, the western port city of Incheon and some of the western parts of the greater Seoul area at 3 p.m. The snowfall that began at around 1 p.m. is expected to gradually move east to affect the country's capital region at 2-4 p.m. and the inland areas of Gangwon Province at 3-5 p.m.

Dec. 18, 2021

S. Korean drug firms rush to develop vaccines effective against omicron

South Korean drugmakers have begun the process to develop COVID-19 vaccines that are effective against the new omicron variant amid concerns that the highly transmissible strain may become a dominant one soon. As the omicron variant fuels fears around the world that the pandemic could rage during the winter season, local pharmaceutical firms have either begun developing omicron-tailored vaccines or studying whether their vaccine candidates are effective against the strain. The country does not

Dec. 18, 2021

Critical COVID-19 cases top 1,000 for 1st time

South Korea's new coronavirus cases stayed above 7,000 for the fourth consecutive day Saturday and critical cases surged to a record high as the government reimposed restrictions to contain the fast spread of the virus.  The country added 7,314 more COVID-19 cases, including 7,284 local infections, bringing the cumulative total to 558,864, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said. Saturday's tally is slightly down from the previous day's 7,434 and the record high of 7,850 rep

Dec. 18, 2021

S. Korea reports additional case of highly pathogenic bird flu

South Korea has confirmed an additional case of highly pathogenic avian influenza at a chicken farm in the central region, the agriculture ministry said Friday. The latest case was reported at the farm where around 344,000 egg-laying chickens are being raised in Sejong, 144 kilometers south of Seoul, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. Health authorities have cordoned off the site and are culling chickens in the farm to prevent the spread of the disease outside t

Dec. 18, 2021

More than 40% of teenagers are fully vaccinated

As of Thursday, more than 50 percent of youths between 12 and 17 in Korea have received the first dose of COVID-19 vaccine and some 40.1 percent are fully vaccinated, officials said Friday. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said 1.55 million teenagers, 55.9 percent of the age group, have received the first dose of the vaccine. The rate of vaccination in older youths is higher, compared to a younger age group. More than 70 percent of those aged between 16 and 17 have received

Dec. 17, 2021

Why so many taekwondo academies?

From school pickup and dropoff and supervised homework time to Hula-Hoop practice for gym class, taekwondo academies are playing an expanded role in South Korea. On top of martial arts lessons, the centers -- a sure-fire find near practically any elementary school in South Korea -- provide much-needed help to two-paycheck couples struggling to juggle work and child-rearing responsibilities. Five-year-old Kwon Ye-rin’s after-kindergarten routine hinges on a taekwondo academy, although

Dec. 17, 2021