The number of MERS deaths in South Korea has risen to four, while eight additional cases have been confirmed.
 
The MERS countermeasure headquarters, under the Ministry of Health and Welfare, confirmed on Friday that a 76-year-old MERS patient had passed away.
 
The man was the third person to have contracted MERS in the nation after he shared a hospital room with patient zero. He had been quarantined since May 21, receiving care at a state-designated hospital.
 
Eight additional cases were confirmed as of 4 p.m. on Friday. Three of the five patients, mentioned by the health authorities, are said to have stayed in the hospital where the primary case was receiving treatment.
 
Later, the mayor of Suwon said in a news conference on Friday afternoon that a Suwon resident had also come down with the illness. The city of Asan also announced two confirmed cases.
 
As of Friday afternoon, four have died due to MERS and 44 are confirmed infected. More than 18-hundred people remain under quarantine, while 221 have been released.