PYONGYANG, May 14 (Xinhua) -- The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) on Saturday registered 21 more deaths from unknown fever, two days after confirming the first case of COVID-19, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) has reported.

The report said 174,440 new fever cases were discovered on Friday, bringing the caseload to 524,440, and 288,810 of them were receiving treatment.

The fever, the origin of which has not been identified, has left 27 people dead so far, it said.

Pyongyang announced the country's first COVID-19 case on Thursday, and declared a nation-wide lockdown.

Kim Jong Un, the country's top leader, has urged the public to implement "maximum emergency" prevention measures to contain the spread of the virus.