MERS-CoV by the numbers: recent global case numbers by week

Click to enlarge.
Confirmed MERS-CoV cases (green) and 
deaths (red) each week. Case numbers are
listed on the y-axis, days of each week along
the x-axis.

While the week has not ended, it is interesting to sum up where we are in terms of MERS case announcements. During the week beginning August 11th, there were no new MERS-CoV case reports (I'm using reporting data not disease onset because the latter is appalling sparse).

As you can see on the right, in the following 2.5-weeks, things have heated up a lot. 17 cases so far. 

Why is this so? Completely unknown. Could it be clusters due to a few single but distinct spillovers from the natural host or perhaps transmission events from a common/shared source (recent umrah)? We can only guess.

If the local public health officials can identify this sort of info, it could provide a way to put a lid on current and future rounds of MERS cases and outbreaks.