South Korea has reported 1,030 new coronavirus infections, the second daily record in a row as a country that had initial success controlling Covid-19 now battles a harsh third wave.

Of the new cases, 1,002 were locally transmitted. It brings the total to 42,766 infections with 580 deaths, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said.

Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said further tightening social distancing restriction to the nation’s highest level would be inevitable if the spread continues, which would be practically a lockdown for the first time in Asia’s fourth-largest economy.