South Korea’s omicron deaths surge amid faltering response

By KIM TONG-HYUNG
Associated Press

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Officials in South Korea tried to calm public fears amid concerns about a faltering pandemic response as daily cases and deaths reached record highs Thursday. The 429 deaths reported in the latest 24 hours were nearly 140 more than the previous one-day record set on Tuesday. The more than 621,000 newly diagnosed coronavirus cases were also a record daily jump. Jaehun Jung, a professor at Gachon University College of Medicine in Incheon, said South Korea’s hospital system could buckle if the number of serious COVID-19 cases reaches 1,800. As of Thursday, 1,159 virus patients were in serious or critical conditions.