Seoul, May 31 (IANS): The number of South Koreans infected with Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) has risen to 15, the health ministry said on Sunday.

Two people in their 30s, who had close contact with a MERS patient being treated in a hospital, were confirmed positive for the deadly viral disease, according to the ministry of health and welfare.

The new cases include a patient who had been hospitalised in the same ward with the patient zero and a visitor to the hospital, according to Xinhua.

The first confirmed case of MERS in South Korea was found in a 68-year-old man who travelled to Bahrain in April and May.

MERS belongs to the same family as the virus that triggered China's 2003 outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). Researchers first identified it in 2012, and since then, more than 1,100 cases have been reported in 23 countries.

There is no vaccine to prevent the spread of this deadly virus.