News / Koreas

South Korea declares official end to deadly MERS outbreak

Wednesday, 23 December 2015 6:52 AM [ Last Update: Wednesday, 23 December 2015 7:24 PM ]

South Korean medical workers wear protective gear at a separated clinic center for MERS at Konkuk University Hospital in Seoul on June 24, 2015. (AFP)

South Korea has declared the official end to a deadly outbreak of the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) in the Asian country.

South Korea’s Health Ministry said on Wednesday that there would be no more risk of MERS in the country which has killed 36 people since it first emerged in May.

The announcement follows the World Health Organization’s guidelines that say an official end to the transmission of the disease can be announced 28 days after the death of the last infected patient.

The maximum incubation period for MERS is 14 days, but it is extended to 28 days for extra precaution.

The last patient to be diagnosed with the virus was a 35-year-old man who died on November 25 because of the "rapid worsening of his underlying condition." He had been receiving cancer treatment before being infected by MERS.

A hospital worker (L) checks the body heat of visitors at a gate of Samsung Medical Center in southern Seoul, South Korea, on July 20, 2015. (AFP)

The deadly virus infected 186 in South Korea, forcing the government to confine about 17,000 people to their homes and close thousands of schools at the peak of the outbreak.

The outbreak also had a disastrous effect on the economy, with a 40-percent drop in the number of foreign visitors to South Korea. At least 130,000 foreign tourists canceled their travel plan to South Korea in June alone over MERS fears, according to government officials.

In August, South Korean President Park Geun-hye dismissed Health Minister Moon Hyong-pyo following widespread criticism over the government’s poor response to the MERS outbreak.

MERS was first identified in Saudi Arabia in 2012. The disease is part of the corona virus family, which includes the common cold and SARS. It can cause symptoms as fever, breathing problems, pneumonia and kidney failure.

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