Daily COVID-19 cases have surpassed 30-thousand for the first time amid the rampant spread of the omicron variant.

The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency(KDCA) said Saturday that 36-thousand-362 new cases were confirmed throughout Friday, including 200 from overseas. The figure is some 89-hundred more than the previous day.

The daily caseload topped 13-thousand on January 26 and reached 20-thousand a week later. It reached the 30-thousand mark in three days.

Of the new cases, over 21-thousand come from the capital area including more than ten-thousand in Gyeonggi Province and over 85-hundred in Seoul.

The number of critically ill patients rose by 12 from the previous day to 269. Twenty-two deaths are also reported in the past 24 hours with the fatality rate at zero-point-71 percent.

On the vaccine front, close to 28 million people, or 54-point-five percent of the population, have received a booster shot. Among those 60 and older, 86 percent have received a third dose. Meanwhile, nearly 86 percent of the population are double jabbed.