New York State Governor Kathy Hochul on Friday declared an emergency in the state due to the continued spread of monkey pox, the Reuters news agency reports yesterday.

"I am declaring a statewide disaster emergency to strengthen our ongoing efforts to address the monkeypox outbreak," the governor said, as quoted by Reuters.

According to her, more than one in four cases of smallpox in the United States are in New York, also having a disproportionate impact on at-risk groups.

As of July 29, New York State had a total of 1,383 confirmed cases of orthopoxvirus / smallpox, according to the New York Department of Health website.

On Friday, Brazil and Spain reported the first smallpox-related deaths outside of Africa.

The World Health Organization last week declared a global health emergency, its highest level of alert, over the smallpox outbreak.

In fact, according to the WHO, the number of smallpox-related deaths in Europe is expected to rise, following the announcement of the first deaths outside Africa.