Covid-19 wrap: First case reported in Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe reports first coronavirus case

Zimbabwe on Friday reported its first coronavirus case, a man who returned to his home in the tourist resort town of Victoria Falls from Britain at the weekend.

"The patient is a 38-year-old Caucasian man ... who had travelled to Manchester in the UK on the 7th of March and returned to his home in Victoria Falls on the 15th of March via South Africa," said health minister Obadiah Moyo.

WATCH | Actor Nyaniso Dzedze and wife 'held at airport' as Covid-19 travel ban kicks in

Actor Nyaniso Dzedze and his wife found themselves stuck in “detention” at OR Tambo International Airport on Friday as government enforced a ban on all passengers flying into the country from high-risk coronavirus countries.

Dzedze shared a video on social media claiming that he and his wife, Yana Seidl, a German dancer, had been detained at the airport because she held a German  passport. Germany is one of the countries SA regards as high risk. Dzedze is South African.

“Being forced to fly out of my own home?!! My Wife and I's current situation ... This Corona Pandemonium has brought us to a place of non sensical resolve.

'If employers tell domestic workers to stay home, they must get paid': union on coronavirus

For most people who rely on piecemeal work, like many domestic workers, the decision to practice social distancing and stay home is at the risk of not being able to put food on the table.

“If employers tell their domestic workers to stay at home, they must still get paid for that,” says Pinky Mashiane, president of the United Domestic Workers of SA (UDWOSA).

After the president’s announcement, declaring the Covid-19 pandemic a national disaster, many businesses have heeded the call to minimise their workforce or to allow employees to work from home to try to curb the spread of the virus. But this is not possible for most domestic workers.

Italy coronavirus deaths surge by 627 in a day, lifting total death toll to 4,032

The death toll from an outbreak of coronavirus in Italy has leapt by 627 to 4,032, officials said on Friday, an increase of 18.4% -- by far the largest daily rise in absolute terms since the contagion emerged a month ago.

On Thursday, Italy overtook China as the country to register most deaths from the highly contagious virus.

Until Friday, Italy had never recorded more than 475 deaths in a single day, while China, where the contagion has slowed sharply, has never reported more than 150.

The total number of cases in Italy rose to 47,021 from a previous 41,035, an increase of 14.6%, the Civil Protection Agency said.

Entire church congregation being traced in response to coronavirus in Free State

The rate of infections spreading due to the coronavirus is increasing in SA and it was projected that the virus could affect 60% of citizens in the future.

That was the message from the ministry of health on Friday afternoon in an update to its earlier confirmation during the day of there being 202 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in the country.

“The rate of spread of the infection is increasing; however this should not prompt a panic response. We must inform the public that it is projected that the virus could affect 60% of citizens in the future,” it said in a statement.

Excerpt from latest statement from department of health:

"The rate of spread of the infection is increasing, however, this should not prompt a panic response. We must inform the public that it is projected that the virus could affect 60% of citizens in the future. It must be emphasised that most South Africans will only experience mild symptoms and humans are capable of developing immunity to the virus. What is of paramount importance is strive to flatten the curve, by slowing down the rate of spread."

New York closes non-essential businesses, bans gatherings

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo on Friday ordered non-essential businesses to close and banned all gatherings, in an escalation of attempts to contain the deadly coronavirus pandemic.

Cuomo said fines would be handed out to anyone violating the order, which he said he would come into effect on Sunday evening.

'Don't be afraid of the virus': financial executive on living with Covid-19

Financial executive Andrew McPherson is one of 202 South Africans confirmed by Friday to have Covid-19, after testing positive eight days ago.

“Don't be afraid of the virus," McPherson told TimesLIVE in an interview on Friday. “But you do need to be afraid of spreading the virus."

Confirmed cases by province in SA

Rugby Football Union ends season in England

England’s Rugby Football Union (RFU) on Friday confirmed the end of the 2019-20 season for all league, cup and county rugby in the country due to the coronavirus pandemic but the Premiership has been excluded.

The RFU earlier this week suspended all rugby activity until April 14 while the Premiership halted the season for five weeks after the British government advised against mass gatherings that required the presence of emergency workers.

Health department gets interdict to stop church gathering in Gauteng

The Gauteng department of health has obtained another coronavirus-related court order — this time against a church in Katlehong, Ekurhuleni.

The church has effectively been restrained from convening a service that is not in accordance with gazetted regulations related to the coronavirus.

Gabon reports sub-Saharan Africa's second virus death

The central African state of Gabon on Friday announced its first death from the coronavirus - a 50-year-old man, who was also the second fatality in sub-Saharan Africa.

The patient had recently been in France and died "from complications arising from diabetes and acute respiratory distress syndrome", said Guy Patrick Obiang Ndong of Gabon's coronavirus team.

The total of known coronavirus cases across Africa stands at 881 and is rising fast after lagging other continents, according to the latest AFP tally.

The first known death south of the Sahara was announced by Burkina Faso on Wednesday. It was of a 62-year-old legislator who also had diabetes.

- AFP

Liquor ban will help combat crime: Bheki Cele on Covid-19's dry weekends

Police minister Bheki Cele believes the 6pm cut-off for booze sales on weekdays, and 1pm on weekends, will reduce crimes such as murder and rape.

Statistics reveal many crimes are committed by drunk people during the early hours on weekends, Cele told a news conference in Pretoria on Friday.

“Dealing with the coronavirus will have a positive impact when it come to dealing with things like crime, especially those which are generated by consumption of liquor,” said Cele.

MultiChoice amplifies news about Covid-19 across the continent

MultiChoice is rolling out Africa-wide public service announcements and making news channels more widely available to share credible information about Covid-19.

MultiChoice Group CEO Calvo Mawela said as of March 20, some news channels will be available for subscribers and non-subscribers on the DStv Now app.

Mawela said CNN had also been added to DStv Family and access subscribers, and Africanews has launched on DStv Channel 417.

Competition Commission waves big stick over price markups

Companies and suppliers that inflate prices amid the rush for hand sanitisers, toilet paper, gloves and other products during the Covid-19 crisis risk being “shopped” by retailers and prosecuted.

The Competition Commission said on Friday it “has noted several complaints from the public about rising prices for essential products, in particular some food, health care and hygiene products”.

There are also concerns about suppliers inflating prices as government, retailers and private health care companies embark on emergency procurement of products related to  curbing and managing the spread of Covid-19, it said.

Casinos and cinemas implement safety measures

Gambling establishments and cinemas have employed social distancing rules, banned the sale of alcohol on casino floors and imposed restrictions on the number of people gambling and watching the latest movie releases amid the Covid-19 outbreak.

On Friday, Sun International announced that apart from its strict hygiene measures at hotels, casinos and other facilities, it would be removing seats from every second slot machine to ensure better social distancing.

SAA to suspend international flights

SAA on Friday announced that it will immediately suspend all international operations until the end of May, in response to a government travel ban aimed at stopping the transmission of the coronavirus.

The Covid-19 pandemic and attendant travel restrictions have resulted in a substantial decline in demand for air travel. The situation has caused many airlines around the world to ground aircraft, release employees and cancel flights.

LISTEN | Covid-19, Sport-0 (featuring Danny Jordaan and Irvin Khoza)

Chief justice Mogoeng restricts court access

Chief justice Mogoeng Mogoeng has issued a directive restricting court attendance as one of the measures adopted by heads of court to curb the spread of Covid-19 in courts around the country.

According to the directive published on Friday, only people with a material interest in a case - such as litigants, accused, witnesses and those who may be needed to provide support, such as those accompanying children, victims of domestic violence or sexual abuse, the elderly and people with disabilities - will be permitted to enter courts.

Matthew McConaughey sends encouraging words

Getting married amid outbreak is 'irresponsible', warn wedding planners

With more than 200 cases of Covid-19 recorded in SA on Friday, local wedding planners said getting married may be a very irresponsible thing do, even though this advice will means more loss of business.  

Johannesburg-based wedding planner Precious Thamaga said she had advised clients to postpone their celebrations to limit the spread of the virus and avoid disappointments.

KZN Covid-19 patients say they are being 'held captive' at hospital

An attorney, acting for four Covid-19 positive patients being held in quarantine in Durban’s Addington Hospital, says a court application to have them released “is a distinct possibility”.

Mark Futcher said his clients - who were among a group of 10 people who travelled to Italy last month, want to be released to self-isolate in their homes. 

KwaZulu-Natal MEC for health Nomagugu Simelane-Zulu, however, said the department had an obligation to follow all clinical management protocols for confirmed cases and will not be "held to ransom by any individuals who appear to seek special treatment".

Medic mom contracts Covid-19, kids quarantined & patients to be screened

A Free State mother and her two children have been quarantined after she tested positive for Covid-19, health minister Dr Zweli Mkhize said.

Mkhize said on Friday that 202 cases of infection had been confirmed in the country. The Free State had recorded seven cases, Gauteng had 33 cases, Western Cape 11 and KwaZulu-Natal seven.

Health minister: Covid-19 cases in SA have increased to 202

The total number of Covid-19 cases in SA is now 202 with seven cases in the Free State - which recorded its first case a day ago.

Health Minister Dr Zweli Mkhize said on Friday that Gauteng had 33 cases, Western Cape 11 and KwaZulu-Natal seven.

Searches for corona-themed adult videos spike

According to a report by Pornhub’s statisticians (yes, they have some of those), average daily traffic to the site has increased as people around the world have started self-isolating and working from home.

The steepest jump — an 11.6% uptick in global traffic — came in the past few days as more countries began going on various forms of lockdown.

Japan welcomes Olympic flame as doubts swirl over Games

The Olympic flame arrived in Japan on Friday to a muted reception, what should have been a joyous celebration dramatically scaled down due to the coronavirus pandemic that has cast doubt over whether the Tokyo Games can even go ahead.

The flame landed on a special charter flight into Matsushima Air Base in Miyagi province, chosen as part of the “Recovery Olympics” to showcase the region’s revival after the 2011 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear meltdown.

How you dry your hands is as important as washing them

Hand drying not only removes moisture from the hands but it also involves friction, which further reduces the microbial load and the environmental transfer of microorganisms. And the transmission of microbes is more likely to occur from wet skin than dry skin.

But it’s not just as simple as drying your hands off in any old way, because how you dry your hands also matters. 

Pastor Bheki Ngcobo insists Easter services should continue

President Cyril Ramaphosa may have banned mass gatherings amid the threat of Covid-19, but pastor Bheki Ngcobo of the South African Zionist Church has threatened to ignore the rules.

Ngcobo said this was a time for Christians to stand together, despite the ban.

He also said the banning rule would not apply to his church because the president “is not God”.

Self-isolating: 8 tips to be as 'normal' as possible

South Africans have been asked to stop non-essential contact with other people and avoid all unnecessary travel.

This is known as social distancing or self-isolating - and it's already driving some people insane.

Self-isolating means cutting yourself off from the rest of the world by staying at home for 14 days. If you need to self-isolate, here are tips to make it easier.

Medical workers plead for people to stay home

A video of medical workers pleading for people to stay home amid Covid-19 has gone viral.

As the global number of confirmed coronavirus cases continues to grow, medical workers around the world are left short-handed.

While the numbers don't seem to be slowing down, messages from medical workers pleading for people to stay home have gone viral.

LISTEN | How coronavirus has changed SA's party scene

8 Covid-19 terms you need to know

The department of health, the National Institute for Communicable Diseases and the World Health Organisation are raising awareness on how people can protect themselves from the virus, with terms like “self-quarantine” and “social distancing” dominating reports.

Here are eight Covid-19-related terms you should know.

Self-isolating? Here are free online exercise classes to check out

Thanks to technology, staying at home does not mean piling on those extra calories.

Gyms, studios and personal trainers are uploading and streaming their classes online to make sure you don't miss out on a workout.

Here are five to try out for  your daily dose of physical wellness.