MERS reaches Thailand, says local media

Thailand today announced that the first case of MERS has been detected in the country, reported Channel News Asia.

The Thai health authorities have been taking precautionary measures against the deadly disease for the past two weeks, including monitoring those with possible symptoms and travellers returning from the Middle East.

MERS is caused by a coronavirus from the same family as the one that triggered China's deadly 2003 outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, says the report.

Majority of MERS cases have been in Saudi Arabia, where more than 1,000 people have been infected since 2012. It also recorded bout 454 deaths.

Thousands of Muslims, including those from Thailand, arrive in Saudi Arabia for haj annually.

Meanwhile, South Korea reported three more deaths from the MERS virus today, bringing the number of fatalities to 23 and amplifying fears that authorities do not have the outbreak under control after the World Health Organisation criticised their response, reported AFP.

The number of infections in South Korea now stands at 165, in what is the largest MERS outbreak outside Saudi Arabia. – June 18, 2015.

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