South Korea has recorded 115 more positive cases of nCoV, bringing the total number of infections in the country to 1,261.

The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) announced today that the country recorded 284 more cases of nCoV, the highest increase since the outbreak. Specifically, South Korea recorded 169 more cases this morning and 115 in the afternoon, bringing the total number of cases to 1,261.

South Korea also recorded the 12th death from nCoV. The deaths included a 73-year-old Korean man who was a follower of the New Heavenly sect in Daegu and a 36-year-old Mongolian who went to South Korea for a liver transplant.

The number of nCoV infections will increase in the coming days as health authorities plan to test more than 210,000 Tan Thien Dia sect members in Daegu. The government will secure 1,600 beds in Daegu and surrounding areas on March 1 to cope with the increase in the number of cases.

In another disturbing development, the total number of cases in Busan, South Korea's second largest city, increased to 58, of which 23 patients were involved in a church in Dongnae district. These people took part in a three-day retreat, which ended on February 17. It is not clear how they were infected.

About 80% of the infections in the two major epidemics are the branch of the Tan Thien Dia denominational church in Daegu and the hospital in Cheongdo district, North Gyeongsang Province. The Korean government also plans to send more medical workers to Daegu, with 205 doctors and nurses volunteering to work in the city.

The Covid-19 outbreak began in Wuhan, China in December 2019, then appeared in 39 countries and territories. The epidemic has infected more than 80,000 people and more than 2,700 deaths worldwide. 50 deaths from nCoV outside mainland China were recorded in Japan, South Korea, France, the Philippines, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Iran and Italy.