Hong Kong issues South Korea warning in ‘serious’ response to Mers outbreak
Response level now 'serious' given growing risk of a community outbreak in South Korea, and people are advised to avoid visiting the country
Hong Kong raised its health response level against Middle East respiratory syndrome (Mers) yesterday from "alert" to "serious" as the government urged the public to avoid visiting South Korea given the rising death toll and surge in infections there.
Secretary for Food and Health Dr Ko Wing-man advised against all unnecessary travel, but the government stopped short of imposing a travel ban.
The decision came after South Korea reported 23 new infections and the death of an 80-year-old man yesterday, pushing its death toll to six and the total number of cases to 87. With such a spike, South Korea now has the second-highest number of infections, after Saudi Arabia.
Watch: Hong Kong sets 'serious' response to Mers outbreak in South Korea
The Hong Kong government's move is seen as unusual and pre-emptive given that under its preparedness plan, a "serious" alert is usually prompted by the confirmation of a small cluster of virus cases locally. There have been no local cases, although China's first confirmed Mers patient flew into the city from South Korea on his way to the mainland.