Over the past week, there have been five cases of the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome confirmed in Saudi Arabia, according to a statement from its Ministry of Health. Of the cases, one is the death of a man, 73, in Turaba City. The elderly man reportedly had a preexisting illness prior to contracting the disease.

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MERS was first identified in Saudi Arabia in 2012.

The first case in South Korea was identified in a 68-year-old businessman in May. The man had visited four Middle Eastern countries, including Saudi, during a business trip.

The man returned with symptoms of MERS, but authorities believed the man only had pneumonia. He had gone through several hospitals and clinics before the disease was identified, triggering the hospital-based transmission of the South Korean MERS outbreak.

Nearly four weeks after the outbreak began, infections and deaths continue well into Monday.

There are now a total of 150 MERS cases in South Korea. The country's Ministry of Health has also announced the 16^th death from the virus.

One of the latest deaths is of a 62-year-old man who died in Busan City. The man was diagnosed on June 7 after a visit to Seoul's Samsung Medical Centre, where more than 70 patients are now undergoing treatment, reported RT.

The outbreak in South Korea has fast become the largest outside Saudi Arabia.

As of the current moment, there are more than 5,200 people put under quarantine, according to TIME.

Thousands more are at risk of being isolated in the next days, according to officials.

On a positive note, thousands of schools have reopened in South Korea on Monday. However, heightened awareness was practiced as temperatures of students are constantly monitored and children are told to frequently wash their hands and practice personal hygiene.

Despite the thousand schoolds that opened, 440 schools remained closed as officials try to stop the MERS virus from spreading.

Last week, the World Health Organization had suggested institutions to reopen since the virus was not linked to schools.

Since the outbreak, the economy of South Korea has reportedly stalled. Tourism also became at risk as over 100,000 tourist visits and hundreds of flights from China have been canceled.

Amid the international concern, Korean authorities were put under scrutiny for not having contained the virus fast enough. Approval ratings of President Park Geun-hye have also plummeted in the past few weeks, according to CNN.

Tagssaudia arabia MERS, Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, MERS, SARS, MERS outbreak, south korean outbreak, World News