신규확진 69명, 다시 두 자릿수로…추석 감염 확산 우려 여전<br /><br />Our top story this afternoon.<br />South Korea's daily COVID-19 cases fell below 100 again on Thursday, but health authorities are still concerned as the upcoming 3-day weekend could spark another wave of infections.<br />The government will announce this week new social distancing measures that will take effect starting October 11th , as the current "special virus prevention period" runs until Sunday.<br />Bae Eun-ji reports.<br />South Korea reported 69 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday,... of them, 60 were locally transmitted and 9 were from overseas.<br />It's a significant drop compared to the day before,... when the number of new cases broke the 100-mark after six straight days of double-digit figures.<br />But officials warned against complacency as cluster infections continue to be seen mainly in military bases and hospitals.<br />Health officials are especially concerned over the upcoming 3-day weekend,... while the so-called "silent transmission" from the Chuseok holiday may still be spreading nationwide.<br />There were several infections between family members during the Chuseok holiday when many traveled across the country.<br />There are also worries that cases could rise in popular vacation spots such as Jeju Island and Gangwon-do Province throughout this week.<br />Among Thursday's locally transmitted cases, 46 came from Seoul and its surrounding areas including Gyeonggi-do province and Incheon.<br />"The outbreak in the greater Seoul area is not over yet. We ask everyone to refrain from large gatherings and events,... to avoid contact with a lot of people during the long weekend."<br />The total number of confirmed cases now stands at 24-thousand-422.<br />There were two more deaths, raising the death toll to 427.<br />Bae Eun-ji, Arirang News.<br /><br />
