COVID-19 WRAP | SA passes 730,000 Covid-19 infections & Oxford Covid-19 vaccine trial results due this year: trial chief

November 04 2020 0 21:49

Matrics with Covid-19 will be allowed to write their final exams

The basic education department on Wednesday night announced that matric pupils who test positive for Covid-19 will be allowed to write their final exams.

This is an about-turn from previous guidelines issued by the department, which indicated that pupils with Covid-19 would not be allowed to enter exam centres.

The department said on Wednesday it had changed its guidelines after receiving representations from parents and pupils who had asked the government to review the protocols. The department said it had consulted the health department and considered the requests then deliberated on the practical implications.

November 04 2020 - 21:38

SA passes 730,000 Covid-19 infections, with 1,700 new cases in 24 hours

SA passed 730,000 Covid-19 cases on Wednesday night, with 1,712 new cases recorded.

November 04 2020 - 21:00

Kenya extends Covid-19 night curfew to Jan. 3

Kenya's President Uhuru Kenyatta has extended the country's nightly curfew to Jan. 3 as part of measures to contain the spread of Covid-19 after numbers surged in October.

Kenyatta said that in October alone, the number of new confirmed coronavirus cases had risen by 15,000 and the East African nation reported about 300 deaths.

"October has gone down as the most tragic month in our fight against Covid-19," Kenyatta said, adding that the rate of infections from tests carried out had shot up to 16% in the month, four times what it was a month earlier.

November 04 2020 - 15:41

Kenya extends nightly curfew to January 3 to contain Covid-19 spread

Kenya's President Uhuru Kenyatta has extended the country's nightly curfew to Jan. 3 as part of a raft of measures to contain the spread of Covid-19 after numbers surged in October.

"October has gone down as the most tragic month in our fight against Covid-19," Kenyatta said, adding that the positivity rate had shot up to 16% in the month, four times what it was a month earlier. 

-REUTERS

November 04 2020 - 15:02

Vatican Museums to close again because of coronavirus

The Vatican Museums, which house some of the world's greatest art treasures, will close for a month in line with new restrictions by Italy to tame a surge in coronavirus infections and deaths.

The vast museums re-opened to limited numbers of visitors on June 1 after a three-month closure during the first Covid-19 wave in Italy.

The Vatican said in a statement on Wednesday that they would be closed from Thursday to at least December 3.

-REUTERS

November 04 2020 - 13:14

Swiss report 10,073 new coronavirus infections, 73 more deaths

Coronavirus infections rose by 10,073 in a day, data from Swiss health authorities showed on Wednesday, as the Alpine country is trying to slow the spread of COVID-19.

The total confirmed cases in Switzerland and tiny neighbouring principality Liechtenstein increased to 192,376 and the death toll rose by 73 to 2,275.

-REUTERS

November 04 2020 - 12:39

Oxford COVID-19 vaccine trial results due this year, trial chief says

The COVID-19 vaccine developed by the University of Oxford could present late-stage trial results before the year end but it is unclear if it will be rolled out before Christmas, the chief trial investigator for the vaccine said on Wednesday.

"I'm optimistic that we could reach that point before the end of this year," Andrew Pollard said of presenting trial results this year.

Asked if the vaccine would be ready by Christmas he said: "There is a small chance."

-REUTERS

November 04 2020 - 12:24

Malaysia reports 1,032 new coronavirus cases, eight new deaths

Malaysia's health ministry reported 1,032 new coronavirus cases on Wednesday, taking the total to 35,425 infections.

The Southeast Asian country also recorded eight new fatalities, raising the death toll from the pandemic to 271.

-REUTERS

November 04 2020 - 11:24

Indonesia reports 3,356 new coronavirus infections, 113 deaths

 Indonesia reported 3,356 new coronavirus infections on Wednesday, taking its total number of cases to 421,731, data from the country's COVID-19 task force showed.

There were 113 more deaths reported, taking total fatalities to 14,259. As of Wednesday, 353,282 people had recovered from the virus in Indonesia, it said.

-REUTERS

November 04 2020 - 10:00

Russia reports record number of new coronavirus cases, deaths

Russia's daily tally of new coronavirus cases surged to a record high of 19,768 on Wednesday, including 5,826 in Moscow, taking the national tally to 1,693,454 since the pandemic began.

Authorities also reported 389 deaths in the last 24 hours, a record high that pushed the official death toll to 29,217. 

-REUTERS

November 04 2020 - 08:35

Mkhize hails plans to manufacture and distribute Covid-19 vaccine locally

Health minister Zweli Mkhize has praised Aspen Pharmacare's plans to partner with Johnson & Johnson to manufacture, package and distribute a candidate Covid-19 vaccine locally, once it was successfully registered in the country.

Earlier this week, the pharmaceutical group announced the Covid-19 vaccine would be produced at its existing sterile facility in Port Elizabeth in the Eastern Cape.

November 04 2020 - 08:24

No pens down parties: Plea as Covid-19 cases rise in Mandela Bay

No pens down parties, valedictory celebrations or farewells, Nelson Mandela Bay acting mayor Thsonono Buyeye has pleaded with Bay parents as Covid-19 cases continue to surge in the metro.

By Monday, the Bay had 2,666 active cases with Motherwell, Uitenhage, KwaNobuhle, Kwazakhele and Walmer among the hotspots.

November 04 2020 - 08:03

Average shopping basket for online shoppers in SA is R803

The lowest online transaction to date for 2020 was for R1 and the highest was R850,000, with R803 the average basket size, says online payment gateway PayFast. 

“We saw a 100% increase in online transactions between April and May 2020," said Jonathan Smit, managing director and founder of PayFast. 

Its e-Commerce Performance Index report consists of industry, payment and buyer data sourced from PayFast platforms over the past year.

November 04 2020 - 07:53

Lung damage found in Covid dead may shed light on 'long Covid' - study

A study of the lungs of people who have died from Covid-19 has found persistent and extensive lung damage in most cases and may help doctors understand what is behind a syndrome known as 'long Covid', in which patients suffer ongoing symptoms for months.

November 04 2020 - 07:38 

India records 46,253 new coronavirus cases

 India recorded 46,253 new coronavirus infections in the last 24 hours, health ministry data showed on Wednesday, with cases rising again in some parts including the capital New Delhi.

With 8.3 million confirmed coronavirus cases, India is the world's second most affected country, behind only the United States.

But the spread has slowed down since a September peak, and the country has reported less than 50,000 infections daily for 10 straight days.

Still, infections are rising in some parts of the country, even as active cases decline nationwide.

Besides New Delhi, the southern state of Kerala and West Bengal in the east have seen a rise in active cases in the last month, according to the health ministry.

The government has warned that cases could surge during the ongoing festival season, asking people to wear masks and maintain social distancing.

-Reuters 

November 04 2020 - 07:04

Mexico reports 5,250 new coronavirus cases, 493 more deaths

Mexico's health ministry reported on Tuesday 5,250 additional cases of the novel coronavirus and 493 more deaths in the country, bringing the official number of cases to 938,405 and the death toll to 92,593.

The government has said the real number of infected people is likely significantly higher than the confirmed cases.

-Reuters