US and UK scouts called off their participation at the World Scout Jamboree in South Korea on Saturday due to scorching temperatures, as organizers also considered cutting the event short for the same reason.

The extreme heatwave has witnessed hundreds of the around 43,000 attendees in North Jeolla province fall ill, which forced South Korea to send over military doctors in an attempt to also save the event from falling through.

Even though air-conditioned buses and freezer trucks were promised by the South Korean government, the US contingent confirmed on Saturday that a withdrawal would take place, a day after the Brits decided the same.

Instead, US scouts are due to go to Camp Humphreys, which is a US Army garrison in Pyeongtaek, as confirmed by US officials.

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The South Korean government has already been called on by the World Organization of the Scout Movement to cut the event short, which is scheduled to function until August 12 in the coastal town of Buan. 

However, a statement said that South Korea was still going ahead with the plan, "assuring that they will do everything possible to address the issues caused by the heat wave".    

Death toll rising

Scouts from Singapore left the campsite earlier than expected while Belgian authorities were searching the places to place their contingent, according to South Korea's Yonhap news agency. 

Meanwhile, representatives of other attending countries are scheduled to convene on Saturday to decide how to proceed, officials told AFP.    

Local media suggests that the heatwave is not the only reason for early withdrawals - poor campsite conditions, with sanitation "less than ideal" such as rudimentary showers and toilets, and ravaging insect bites are cited.   

One account comes from a Korean-American parent, who claims that an ambulance, called for her 15-year-old daughter who lost consciousness at the event, did not arrive until 45 minutes later.    

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She told South Korean broadcaster SBS: "We were told she lost consciousness and (her eyes rolled back), revealing the whites," adding: "Those 45 minutes were terrifying for us. We can't even imagine what might have happened during that time. How can South Korea allow children to be neglected like this?"

The heatwave in South Korea has already caused the death of 17 people, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency and fire authorities last Monday. 

According to Yonhap News, the majority of those killed were farmers and elderly people working outside in the intense heat. South Korea has been in the grip of sweltering heat since the season's first heat wave advisories were issued in mid-June, with recent highs in several regions of the nation reaching about 35 degrees Celsius.