South Korea will temporarily allow blood drives in malaria-prone areas of the country to cope with dangerously low blood reserves, the government said Friday.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare said the country's blood reserves stood at just 2.1 days, much lower than the recommended 5 days.

The country's reserves are so low, the government has already raised the blood reserve alert level to "yellow" and will consider marking it up further if things do not improve, it said.

Blood donations will be allowed in several areas adjacent to or not far away from Seoul, the ministry said, adding people who have stayed in those regions, and traveled to North Korea for more than one day, can also give blood up until March.

In the past, people who stayed overnight in those regions were barred from giving blood out of public health concerns.

Most malaria cases reported in South Korea have occurred along the inter-Korean border.

"Lifting of the regional ban marks the first time such measures have been taken since 2007," a source said. "The current situation is almost as serious as in 2009 when the country struggled to cope with the Influenza A scare."

Because a lot of soldiers are stationed in these areas, the lifting of the ban can allow collective blood drives in military barracks that can push up reserve numbers quickly, he said.

According to the ministry and the Korea National Red Cross, there is usually a drop in blood reserves during the winter, although last year it was more severe.

The outbreak of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome and mumps in some schools hurt blood drives, it said.

The ministry said that all blood collected from malaria-prone areas will be kept in cold storage for 14 days which will allow it to be tested. 

The 14 day period will allow all malaria parasites to die making the blood safe for transfusion. In the event the temporary lifting of the ban does not do enough, the government can expand the waiver period.

While the national reserve has fallen, frontline hospitals are still reporting 4-5 days of blood, so ordinary people need not be overly concerned, the ministry said.

"The national reserve is maintained as a precautionary measure to cope with emergency situations," it said. (Yonhap)