CRITICAL CASES HIT 852

[Anchor Lead]

Korea reported 7,022 new COVID-19 cases today. Daily cases have been above seven thousand for three days in a row. Experts say they could reach ten thousand by the end of the year. The number of ICU patients is also at record-high levels, with few hospital beds available in the greater Seoul area.

[Pkg]

The daily number of coronavirus cases surpassed seven thousand for three straight days. 3 new cases of the Omicron variant have been added, reaching a total of 63. The KDCA says if no measures are taken to contain the outbreak, the daily tally could reach ten thousand by the end of the year or early next year. If the situation gets worse, daily cases could soar to 8,000-9,000 by the end of this month, and record 11,000 in January.

[Soundbite] Jeong Eun-kyeong(Director, KDCA) : "Unless we mitigate the outbreak by social distancing and minimizing gatherings and personal contact, the health care system will no longer be able to handle so many cases. It's an extremely grave situation."

What's particularly concerning is the soaring number of critically ill COVID-19 patients. As of midnight, Friday, 852 seriously ill patients were reported. The number remained in the 800s for three days in a row, straining the nation's heathcare system. More than 80 percent of ICU patients are 60 and older. Various risk indicators are also showing how grave the situation is. Nearly 90 percent of some 360 ICU beds in Seoul are already occupied. More than one thousand patients have waited for over a day to be hospitalized. Some are calling for large gymnasiums and exhibition halls to be used as temporary clinics for COVID-19 patients. Authorities vowed to secure as many beds as possible in hospitals, as controlling the virus in gymnasiums is difficult.