The government said Monday that mass gatherings could play a “pivotal role” in spurring greater community transmission of the coronavirus that causes COVID-19, as new cases linked to churches stoked concerns here.

Recent cases in the metropolitan area involved gatherings, such as religious services, where people had sustained close contact in enclosed spaces and this resulted in mass transmissions, Jung Eun-kyeong, director of the Korea Centers for Disease Control, told reporters during a press briefing.

“It’s a situation where one person who contracted the virus can produce multiple infected people in a short period of time,” she said.

South Korea confirmed 74 additional cases of the new coronavirus, bringing the total to 8,236, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control.

The number of new infections fell below 80 for the second day in a row after 76 were discovered Sunday, the lowest number in three weeks.

Despite the signs that the outbreak may be slowing down, Vice Health and Welfare Minister Kim Kang-lip urged the public to practice “social distancing” to prevent person-to-person transmission at large events and in crowded enclosed spaces.

“It is very important to (give this our) utmost efforts for the next two to three weeks from now on,” he said during a press briefing.

In the face of a global pandemic, the government said it would concentrate on strengthening the domestic management and control system while preventing the inflow of the virus from abroad.

Four new infections were reported Monday among people coming from overseas.

Among the 76 new cases reported in Korea, 40 were linked to a Christian church in Seongnam, south of Seoul, raising the total number of infections from the River of Grace Church to 46.

Local officials found that the church had held a service March 8 despite a government request to refrain from doing so, addressed to religious people nationwide. 

The city tested 135 followers who took part in the service and found a cluster of linked cases.

The largest cluster of infections in the metropolitan area -- an insurance company’s call center in Guro-gu, Seoul -- added two more confirmed cases Monday, bringing the total to 129.

A church attended by a call center employee in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, reported a total of 14 cases.

According to the KCDC data, Seoul reported six new cases and nearby Gyeonggi Province reported 20.

One new case was reported in Busan and one in Sejong.

The number of people who had been released after fully recovering from the respiratory disease stood at 1,137, up 303 from a day earlier, the KCDC said.

Of those receiving treatment for the virus, 89 have severe symptoms and some 59 are critically ill, the agency said. 

As of 3 p.m., the death toll stood at 77, with two of the deaths added to the government’s official data released in the morning. The fatality rate stood at 0.91 percent.

An 82-year-old woman who tested positive March 5 died of pneumonia after being treated at the Gimcheon Medical Center in North Gyeongsang Province.

In Daegu, an 84-year-old man who suffered from dementia, diabetes and hypertension died at Kyungpook National University Hospital, where he had been hospitalized since he tested positive Feb. 28.

The vast majority of deaths from COVID-19 -- 71 percent -- were in people aged over 70. No deaths have been reported among people younger than 29.

By Park Han-na (hnpark@heraldcorp.com)