South Korea Wednesday raised its alert for foot-and-mouth disease to the highest level, "serious," in the wake of the worst outbreak of the highly contagious animal disease.

The disease, first confirmed on Nov. 29 at farms about 270 kilometers southeast of Seoul, has spread to other parts of the country extensively, raising concerns that it can have a devastating impact on the country's livestock industry.

In a joint statement delivered Wednesday, the Ministry of Public Administration and Security and the Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said the central anti-disaster headquarters will take charge of quarantine, decontamination and vaccination efforts currently underway and mobilize all available resources in order to bring an end to the outbreaks.

"We have decided to upgrade the alert level for the livestock disease from the current 'alert' to 'serious' and form the central disaster control headquarters directed by the Minister of Public Administration and Security, to end foot-and-mouth disease at an early stage," Minister of Public Administration and Security Mang Hyung-kyu said.

The last time Seoul issued a "serious" alert was when the country tried to combat the human Influenza A outbreaks that struck the country in the second half of 2009.

The Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, meanwhile, said it has expanded areas that will be given animal vaccines to control the spread of foot-and-mouth disease. Vaccines will be administered in 12 regions across the country from the initial five announced last week.

In a desperate attempt to curtail the spread of the disease, the government launched vaccinations last week, risking a longer export ban from overseas.

It takes longer for a country that launches vaccinations to regain disease-free status from the World Organization for Animal Health than when the disease is curbed solely by culling.

A total of "470,000 animals, including 59,000 cattle, 403,000 pigs and some sheep and deer, have been culled so far," Yoo Jeong- bok, Minister for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said.

Foot-and-mouth disease affects cloven-hoofed animals such as cattle, pigs, deer, goats and sheep. South Korea was hit by the disease in 2000 and 2002 and two more times earlier this year.

(Xinhua News Agency December 30, 2010)