TAIPEI, Taiwan — Taiwan reported 240 cases of domestically transmitted cases of COVID-19 and two new deaths Tuesday.

It was lower than Monday’s 333 cases but continues to be the island’s worst outbreak of the pandemic, with more than 1,000 cases discovered in about a week. Now, more than 600,000 people are in medical isolation for two weeks, as the island seeks to stop transmission of the virus.

Island-wide, schools will be shut for two weeks starting Wednesday, the minister of education said on Tuesday at a daily news briefing.

The island has recorded 14 deaths and 2,260 cases in total and has been lauded for its success in curbing the spread of the virus despite close ties with China, where COVID-19 first emerged in late 2019.

President Tsai Ing-wen spoke about the island’s handling of the current outbreak during a visit to the Central Epidemic Command Center Tuesday morning.

She assured people vaccines purchased abroad will arrive and that domestic development of a vaccine was progressing.

And she said several quarantine centers were being added to care for patients with mild or no symptoms. “We will continue to strengthen our medical capacity.”