Cape Town – A total of 2 514 new Covid-19-related cases have been identified in South Africa (2 888 yesterday) since the last report, with the cumulative number of cases rising to 759 658.
Health Minister Zweli Mkhize said on Thursday 115 more Covid-19-related deaths have been reported (123 yesterday): 43 in the Eastern Cape; 23 in the Free State; 23 in Gauteng; 9 in KwaZulu-Natal; 2 in Mpumalanga 2; and 15 in the Western Cape.
This brings the total number of deaths to 20 671. Of the 115 deaths, 24 reportedly occurred in past 24 hours: 10 in Eastern Cape; 1 in Gauteng; 4 in KwaZulu-Natal; and 9 in the Western Cape.
The number of recoveries now stand at 702 544, which translates to a recovery rate of 92.6%. The cumulative number of tests conducted to date is 5 214 036, with 24 456 new tests conducted since the last report.
Western Cape health officials are concerned about an increase in Covid-19 cases in the province as the Garden Route pushed up the infection rate this week.
Health department head Dr Keith Cloete said the latest data showed an increase in cases in all Cape Town districts as well.
During a media briefing on Thursday, Dr Terence Marshall, health cluster lead for the Garden Route, said George and Knysna led the upward climb in infections and had 1 102 active cases between them.
More than 55.93 million people have been reported to be infected by the novel coronavirus globally and 1 343 584 have died, according to a Reuters tally.
Infections have been reported in more than 210 countries and territories since the first cases were identified in China in December 2019.
IOL