MUSCAT: There is no presence of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) coronavirus in cattle and camels in Oman, the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries has said.

In a statement uploaded on its twitter account, the ministry said: “The Ministry of Agriculture follows what has been circulated in social media on the existence of human cases with the disease of the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (Corona), where the ministry immediately received preliminary information of cases in coordination with specialists in the Ministry of Health.”

“The ministry has taken samples and inspected the herds of citizens’ cattle and camels suspect of the disease, and the laboratory test results show the cattle are free of the virus,” the ministry added.

Meanwhile, earlier the Ministry of Health had confirmed that two people have died as a result of MERS in Oman.

The statement read that in light of the statement issued by the Ministry of Health (MoH) on MERS cases on January 28, the number of recorded cases to date is five. Two cases of death were also reported.

“The MoH expresses its sincere and deepest condolences to the families of the deceased. The Ministry also extends its thanks to the community for their cooperation and understanding of the precautionary steps taken to ensure their safety and reduce the infections.

“The other cases are receiving the necessary medical care at one of the referral hospitals.”

The ministry called on citizens to comply with all disease prevention measures, saying, “The Ministry calls upon everyone to seek information from the reliable source. It urges all to comply with the preventive measures to control infection and practicing healthy habits when sneezing and coughing.”