The Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) sweeping through South Korea is dividing the country as officials argue with each other.

A fourth death due to MERS has been confirmed Friday, alongside five new cases which bring the total number of confirmed cases of the disease in South Korea to 41. According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the latest to succumb to MERS is a 76-year-old man diagnosed last May 21. He died while receiving treatment after coming into contact with patient zero, a man who had traveled from the Middle East in April.

A viral illness, MERS is caused by a virus from the same family as the one responsible for the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) which wreaked havoc in Hong Kong in 2003. The MERS virus has a 14-day incubation period. Once the infection develops, patients can experience fevers, shortness of breath and coughs.

There is no treatment or vaccine against MERS and this is contributing to the growing fear of the disease in South Korea. It doesn't help that officials are not on the same page when it comes to releasing information to the public.

Park Won-soon, Seoul mayor, said a medical doctor from the city had broken protocol and attended a public gathering even after being suspected of having been exposed to the MERS virus, putting at risk almost 1,600 people who were at the event.

The doctor shot back, denying the accusation and claiming he was not tagged for isolation when he went to the event. He also voluntarily canceled a meeting once he learned that he had been in close contact with a MERS patient.

Moon Hyung-pyo, the country's Health Minister, was not pleased with the city mayor.

"I deeply regret it that the Seoul city government has caused unnecessary public misunderstanding and concerns," he said, adding the mayor's words made the national government look like it was not implementing effective measures.

By Thursday, over 1,600 people have been put under isolation. Initially, the government only quarantined 100 people who may have come into close contact with the first confirmed patient.

The World Health Organization is set to send a team to South Korea to assess the situation. The MERS outbreak in the country is spreading at a different speed and pattern than what was observed in Saudi Arabia so the South Korean health ministry is testing the MERS virus to determine if it has mutated.

Outside of the Middle East, South Korea has the most number of confirmed MERS cases.

Photo: Dan Queiroz | Flickr