At least one person diagnosed with COVID-19 in North Korea has died. Hundreds of thousands have developed fevers, state media said on Friday, suggesting the country’s first confirmed outbreak since the pandemic began could be massive. About 187,800 people have been treated in isolation since late April due to an “explosive spread across the country” of unexplained fever, the official KCNA news agency reported.

About 350,000 people showed fever on Tuesday alone, with 18,000 newly reported symptoms, KCNA said. About 162,200 of those have been treated so far, but it was not specified how many had tested positive for COVID-19. KCNA said at least six people died of fever, including one confirmed to be infected with the Omicron variant of the virus.

On Tuesday, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un visited the anti-virus command centre to check on the situation and response after declaring the “worst national emergency” on Thursday and ordering a nationwide lockdown.
KCNA said he “criticised the simultaneous spread of fever centred in the capital region, which shows that the epidemic prevention system we have established has weak links.”

King prioritised aggressively isolating and treating people with fever while calling for science-based treatments and strategies to be developed “at lightning speed” and strengthening drug supply measures. In a separate release, KCNA said health authorities were trying to organise testing and treatment systems and intensify disinfection efforts.

The virus’s rapid spread underscores the potential for a major crisis in a country that lacks medical resources but refuses international vaccination help and keeps borders closed. Analysts said the outbreak could exacerbate the isolated country’s already dire food situation this year, as the lockdown will hamper its ‘comprehensive fight’ against drought and mobilisation of its workforce.