Cape Town – Concerned about the increase in Covid-19 cases in regions neighbouring Cape Town, the Langeberg Municipality, which includes Ashton, Bonnievale, McGregor, Montagu and Robertson, will today launch an awareness drive to stem the tide.
At the current rate, the region is set to exceed 500 confirmed cases by the weekend, with 13 deaths.
Premier Alan Winde said yesterday the province had recorded a total of 65 155 confirmed Covid-19 cases and 46515 recoveries.
The province recorded an additional 59 deaths, bringing the total number of fatalities to 1 918.
As of Wednesday, George recorded the most cases on the Garden Route, with 652 infections; Drakenstein in the Cape Winelands recorded 2591 cases; Overstrand in the Overberg recorded 629 and the Saldanha Bay Municipality on the West Coast recorded 640 cases.
The Langeberg Municipality said its Prevent-and-Protect campaign rested on four legs: a pamphleteering drive to increase awareness, the deployment of 40 Covid-19 advocacy workers, a social media campaign and enforcement through police and law enforcement.
“We found that our people are doing most of the right things, but unfortunately they are doing it wrong,” municipal manager Soyisile Mokweni said.
“People wash their hands, but not for 20 seconds and not as regularly as they should. Also, they keep a physical distance from one another but not the required 1.5m.
"They also wear a mask, but some still wear it under their chin or with their noses exposed. And then we still see too many people socialising over weekends and visiting each other. We need to get them to do the right things the right way.”
The Garden Route District Municipality, meanwhile, said the region had seen a 197% increase in Covid-19-positive tests over the past seven days.
“Provincial government and Garden Route District Municipalities appeal to Garden Routers who have tested positive for Covid-19, or who have been identified as a close contact by the Department of Health to behave responsibly in order to limit the spread to others,” the municipality said in a statement.
Winde said the latest provisioning scenario showed the infection peak in the Western Cape seemed to be later than was originally projected, and was likely to take place from the end of this month into the beginning of August.
“This peak is also flatter than was originally projected. However, this flatter trajectory would last for longer. This means potentially more cumulative deaths of approximately 10 000 people during the pandemic,” Winde said.
Given the latest projections, Winde said the province would not proceed with a CTICC 2 Hospital of Hope expansion at this stage.