Seoul: Due to Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), nearly 700 schools including kindergartens and colleges have been closed in South Korea. So far the virus has infected 35 people and also killed two persons. The outbreak has also made thousands of people to cancel their travel plans.
On Thursday, five more cases have been confirmed. A 68-year-old man, after his trip to Saudi Arabia, was diagnosed with the virus on May 20. The officials are strongly advising to people to stay at home and some others were isolated at state-designated facilities.
The fear of MERS casued public to wear masks on subways and buses. It is learnt that over 7,000 tourists had cancelled their trips to South Korea. The virus has infected 1,161 people globally. Around 436 deaths have been reported. More than 20 countries have been affecetd with most cases in Saudi Arabia. MERS has no cure or vaccine but is less infectious of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), which killed hundreds in 2003 in Asia.
A KTO spokesperson told that the mass cancellation is unusual and MERS outbreak was the main reason. On Wednesday, in an emergency meeting, President Park called for utmost efforts to curb the spread of the MERS.
