South Korea reported 210 more cases of novel coronavirus infections Saturday, taking total in the country to 3,736. The latest death toll in South Korea was raised by one to 18 as of Sunday.

The latest COVID-19 victim was an 83-year-old man in the southeastern city of Daegu with underlying illnesses, including a stroke and hypertension, according to Kwon Jun-wook, an official from the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC).

Of the 210 new cases, 136 are in Daegu, the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in South Korea; 41 were reported in neighboring North Gyeongsang Province, according to the KCDC.

A 45-day-old baby has been diagnosed with the novel coronavirus, health authorities said Sunday, becoming the youngest patient in South Korea.

Health authorities said the baby boy, born on January 15, tested positive for COVID-19 after their parents had contracted the virus. The father tested positive for coronavirus last Thursday, and he is reportedly a follower of the Shincheoji Church of Jesus in Daegu, where most of the infected people in South Korea contracted the virus from.

The baby and her mother have entered self-quarantine at their house in Gyeongsan, North Gyeongsang Province for now, after doctors said they are in good condition. Health authorities said they will be later transferred to a hospital.

Amid the surge of the confirmed cases, Nigeria and Angola added South Korea to their travel restriction list over the coronavirus fears, the foreign ministry said on Sunday. 

As of Sunday, 78 countries and regions have moved to bar the entry of people traveling from South Korea or to strengthen quarantine steps.

Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca announced Saturday the country would halt passenger flights to and from South Korea following the novel coronavirus outbreak. The measure would be effective at 12 a.m. Sunday. While Uzbekistan and Russia have drastically reduced its flights to and from Seoul.

Thirty-five countries will bar South Koreans or anyone who have recently visited South Korean from entering their country. 43 countries and regions have imposed stricter quarantine measures, requiring travelers from South Korea to be quarantined for 14 days, with or without COVID-19 symptoms.

Seoul has pleaded with foreign countries to refrain from taking excessive entry restrictions against South Koreans.

Collective efforts to rein in the spread of the virus 

On Friday, South Korea recorded the biggest daily jump in infections with 813, surpassing the number of new confirmed cases in China for the first time. The mayor of Daegu said "the city is short of medical personnel and materials," and "Daegu can't handle the abrupt surge of cases on its own."

In response to the urgent demand, the Chinese Embassy in South Korea donated around 25,000 surgical masks to Daegu, the city most affected by the outbreak.

At the same time in Shanghai, the Cultural Office of Consulate General of the Republic of Korea collected 500,000 masks, of which 100,000 are medical masks, and 400,000 KN95 masks, and delivered them to Daegu and north Gyeongsang Province, according to Yonhap.

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Chinese Ambassador to South Korea Xing Haiming said that China and South Korea "share weal and woe and help each other in the fight against the COVID-19 epidemic." He also stressed that "Chinese people will always remember the helping hand extended by the South Korean people in times of a crisis."

Last week, South Korean President Moon Jae-in said during a phone call with Chinese President Xi Jinping that they will take China's difficulties as theirs, and the two sides will "lift the China-South Korea strategic cooperative partnership to higher levels."

It is critical moment in reining in the spread of the virus both in and outside China. With the situation deteriorating in neighboring countries, Chinese people abroad are contributing in their own ways.

In Japan, many overseas Chinese are distributing masks that they have collected.

On social media, people referred to a Chinese girl wearing a baby deer doll on her head and handing out masks as "the deer knight." The girl told Xinhua in an interview that her name is Tiantian and she started her own advertising agency after finishing college in Japan.

Since January, Japan has been supporting China's fight against the coronavirus across all sectors, including government agencies, enterprises and non-government organizations.

Now that Japan is suffering from the outbreak too, "I should do my part to help the local people and pay a debt of gratitude," said the deer knight.