Taiwan sets record daily COVID-19 death toll

TAIPEI - Taiwan on Saturday reported 320 new local COVID-19 infections and 166 backlogged local cases, including 21 deaths, the local disease monitoring agency said.

It is the 14th consecutive day that new local infections have exceeded 200 on the island.

Of the new local cases, 169 were male, 151 were female, and their onset of symptoms ranged from May 7 to 28.

Among the 166 backlogged cases, 90 were male, and 76 were female, the agency said.

A total of 21 deaths from COVID-19 were reported on Saturday, the highest daily toll on the island since the pandemic began.

In addition to the local cases, Taiwan also reported seven new imported COVID-19 cases from Indonesia, India, and the Philippines.

Taiwan is seeing a steep rise in local infections amid strained medical resources. Given the severity of local transmissions, Taiwan has extended its level 3 alert for COVID-19 to June 14.

The total number of confirmed cases on the island since the epidemic began has risen to 7,806, including 99 deaths, the agency said.