Two MERS patients die, 6 more cases confirmed

Origin |

Published : 2015-06-02 09:20

Updated : 2015-06-02 14:52

Seoul on Tuesday confirmed two deaths from MERS, while six more have been added to the list of infected patients in the country. Among the six, two are believed to be the first tertiary infection cases, the ministry said.

As of Tuesday morning, the number of confirmed cases in Korea marked 25, surpassing Jordan as the country with the third-most MERS cases in the world.

A Chinese tourist wears a protective mask as she looks around Gyeongbokgung Palace in Seoul. (Yonhap)

One of the two deceased patients died of respiratory failure Monday afternoon. The 57-year-old, who had been suffering from asthma and interacted with the first MERS patient last month, was diagnosed with the virus posthumously.

The other is a 71-year-old who became the sixth confirmed patient on May 28. He had been suffering from a kidney disease prior to being diagnosed with MERS.

Among the six new confirmed patients, four are believed to have been infected by the first patient from May 15-17, at the same medical facility where 15 individuals were previously infected by the 68-year-old.

The remaining two are believed to have been infected by the 16th confirmed patient at a different clinic from May 28 to 30.

By Claire Lee (dyc@heraldcorp.com)