BANGKOK, Thailand – Thai Muslims planning to travel to Saudi Arabia for the Hajj pilgrimage are being urged to take precautions against a SARS-like virus, the coronavirus, during their journey, local media reported.

After the emergence of a new strain of coronavirus in Saudi Arabia, Thai Culture Minister Sukumol Kunplome announced that a medical unit is being established to raise awareness of the virus and to provide checkups for pilgrims ahead of their trips. Those returning from the pilgrimage will need to have their health monitored for ten days if they show symptoms of illness.

The virus has killed one man in Saudi Arabia. A second man is fighting for his life in London, after visiting Saudi Arabia. Prasert Thongcharoen, an adviser to the Department of Disease Control, said the coronavirus can strike either the respiratory or gastrointestinal system. "It's possible that symptoms may range from just cold-like symptoms to respiratory failure and death," he said, according to The Nation.

An estimated 15,000 Thais make the pilgrimage to Mecca each year.