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

Concerns have been raised that the disease can have a devastating impact on the country's livestock industry, the disease, at farms about 270 kilometers southeast of Seoul, was first confirmed on November 29 and has extensively spread to other parts of the country.

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

Minister of Public Administration and Security Mang Hyung-kyu said, "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.

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