(Photo: Yonhap News)
South Korea has reported another day of more than 700 new coronavirus cases as cluster infections continued to pop up across the country.
The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said Friday that 747 COVID-19 patients were diagnosed in the last 24 hours, including 18 imported cases, bringing the cumulative total to 130,380.
Two additional virus-related fatalities raised the death toll to 1,893.
There are growing concerns of a nationwide spike as all major cities and provinces have reported new cases, with 40 percent of the latest coming from areas outside the greater Seoul area.
Officials said the government is closely monitoring the situation and looking at different variables, including travel trends and threat posed by virus variants, to determine whether additional antivirus curbs may be needed to slow down the spread.
Health authorities are urging people to stick to social distancing rules while encouraging all to get vaccinated when they become eligible to get the shots.
The national vaccine rollout has been slow, however, with just over 7 percent of the population having received at least one dose so far.
Vaccine supplies have been tight, but the KDCA said around 8.9 million people between the ages of 60 and 74 will receive shots in the coming weeks.
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