Covid-19: Infections increase to 1187 and Ladysmith records 1st death
- The real effects of the lockdown will only be felt in the coming weeks
- Ladysmith has reported its 1st death
The coronavirus infection rate has slowed this weekend to just 17 new cases bringing the total to 1187. This could be due to the weekend and labs running on a skeleton staff or an actual decrease in the rate of infection.
The figures were confirmed by the department of health on Saturday. Gauteng is still the centre for the outbreak in South Africa with 533 cases.
Briefly.co.za learned that the government ordered lockdown is an attempt to force social distancing and bring down the rate of infection, however, due to the nature of the virus people can be infectious without symptoms for up to 2 weeks, meaning that the effects of the lockdown will only be felt in the coming weeks.
Ladysmith has confirmed its 1st death from the coronavirus. An elderly male patient died on Saturday afternoon at the La Verna Lenmed Private Hospital according to the Ladysmith Gazette.
He had returned from the Kruger National Park where he had begun to feel ill. He was tested initially for tick bite fever and then malaria. When he was finally tested for Covid-19 for which he tested positive.
Shortly after he was diagnosed his condition deteriorated rapidly.
His family and friends have gone into self-isolation and if necessary are being tested for the virus. The National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NCID) could not release the patient's details but could only report on details at a provincial level.
A spokesperson for the NICD said, “We cannot give patient information to the media. If there are any deaths that are Covid-related, the Minister will announce.”
Source: Briefly.co.za
