New COVID-19 cases at 55,292; serious cases tallied at 324

▲ People wait to take coronavirus tests at a COVID-19 testing center in Seoul on Aug. 7, 2022. (Yonhap)

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New COVID-19 cases at 55,292; serious cases tallied at 324

SEOUL, Aug. 8 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's new COVID-19 cases fell below 100,000 on Monday for the first time in a week on fewer virus tests during the weekend, but the number of seriously ill patients reached a two-month high amid a virus resurgence fueled by a highly contagious omicron subvariant.

The country added 55,292 new COVID-19 infections, including 482 from overseas, bringing the total caseload to 20,544,420, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said.

The latest daily caseload is the highest for a Monday since the 47,725 tally logged on April 18 and up 1.24 times from the 44,654 cases reported a week ago in the midst of another virus surge driven by the fast spread of the omicron subvariant BA.5.

The growth in new infections led to the surge in the number of seriously ill patients, with 324 critical cases Monday.

The KDCA reported 29 deaths from COVID-19, raising the death toll to 25,292. The fatality rate stood at 0.12 percent.

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