AS SOUTH KOREA counted its 11th straight day of triple-digit daily coronavirus cases yesterday, health officials pleaded for people to follow guidelines or risk further restrictions and strains on hospitals.

Most of the 266 new cases reported by the Korea Centres for Disease Control & Prevention (KCDC) were in the capital Seoul’s metropolitan area, home to half of the country’s 51 million people, but new infections were also reported in other major cities, including Busan, Daejeon and Sejong.

KCDC director Jeong Eun Kyeong said it is likely the country will continue to report huge infection numbers in coming days as health workers scramble to trace and test contacts of virus carriers.

The 397 new cases reported on Sunday marked South Korea’s highest single-day total since March 7, during an outbreak that was largely limited to its south-eastern region and was stabilised by April.

Officials consider the current outbreak to be country’s biggest crisis since the emergence of Covid-19, given the population density of the capital region and the spread of the virus among more varied sources.

The country has banned larger gatherings, shut down nightspots and churches and removed spectators from professional sports nationwide.