COVID-19 WRAP | SA out of the top 10 list of most Covid-19 cases in the world

12 October 2020 - 07:46 By TimesLIVE

October 12 2020 - 21:46

Just 888 new Covid-19 cases in SA in past 24 hours, with eight deaths

Just eight Covid-19 related deaths have been recorded in the past 24-48 hours, the health ministry said on Monday.

There were also 888 new cases identified since the previous statistics were released on Sunday night. There are now 693,359 total cases across SA.

Health minister Dr Zweli Mkhize said that of the fatalities recorded in the past two days, one was in the Free State, two in Gauteng and five in the Western Cape. There were, however, 75 extra deaths confirmed since Sunday night, though these had been recorded previously but only confirmed in the most recent reporting period.

October 12 2020 - 19:22

UK's Johnson shuts pubs in parts of England with new Covid-19 curbs

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson imposed a tiered system of further restrictions on parts of England on Monday, including shutting pubs, to curb an acceleration in Covid-19 cases, though anger was rising at the cost of the curtailment of freedoms.

Johnson announced a new three-tiered system in an attempt to standardise a patchwork of often complicated and confusing restrictions imposed across England.

Lawmakers will vote on the move on Tuesday.

-REUTERS

October 12 2020 - 15:59

KZN health department closes most of its Covid-19 field hospitals

The KwaZulu-Natal health department has closed most of its temporary field hospitals that were erected to help permanent facilities cope with Covid-19 patients.

Health MEC Nomagugu Simelane-Zulu told journalists on Sunday that the majority had been shut, with the exception of the temporary or alternative structures which had put into permanent facilities.

“Those three are in Clairwood, iLembe district and Ngwelezane hospital in Empangeni,” she said.

October 12 2020 - 15:38

British schools 2021 exams delayed by 3 weeks due to Covid-19

Students in England will take school exams in the summer of 2021 but they will be delayed by three weeks to help address disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, Education Secretary Gavin Williamson said on Monday.

Williamson was accused of overseeing a fiasco this summer over how results were awarded to teenagers unable to take their exams because of the crisis, after the mathematical model used to assess teacher's predictions lowered grades for almost 40% of students taking their main school-leaving exams.

Teachers said he ignored warnings that the grading system would lead to unfair results and he was lampooned by the media for his handling of the issue.

-REUTERS

October 12 2020 - 15:33

Development of AstraZeneca's potential coronavirus

AstraZeneca's experimental Covid-19 vaccine is one of the most advanced candidates in the race against the novel coronavirus.

The British drugmaker has signed several supply and manufacturing deals with companies and governments around the world as it gets closer to reporting early results of a late-stage clinical trial.

Developed by the University of Oxford and licensed to AstraZeneca in April, the vaccine is expected to be one of the first from big pharma to secure regulatory approval, along with Pfizer and BioNTech's candidate.

-REUTERS

October 12 2020 - 14:00

Iran reports highest ever daily coronavirus deaths - TV

Iran registered a daily record 272 deaths from coronavirus in the past 24 hours, the health ministry said on Monday, taking total fatalities to 28,816 in the worst-hit country in the Middle East.

Ministry spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari told state TV that 4,206 new cases were identified in the past 24 hours, with the total number of identified cases spiking to 504,281.

Iranian health officials have warned about a third wave of the pandemic, while the government has blamed the spike in infections partly on a decline in public adherence to health protocols.

Mask-wearing became mandatory in public in the capital on Saturday and President Hassan Rouhani announced that violators would be fined.

Authorities are planning to make mask-wearing mandatory in public in other large cities, Iranian media reported.

-REUTERS

October 12 2020 - 13:14

Second human trials of Russian COVID-19 vaccine abroad, in UAE, have launched - Kremlin

Human trials of the Russian COVID-19 vaccine have begun in the United Arab Emirates, the Kremlin said on Monday in a statement detailing a phone call between President Vladimir Putin and Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan.

The trials in the UAE are the second trials of the Sputnik V vaccine abroad, following the launch of trials in Belarus. Trials are also expected to begin in Venezuela in the near future.

The Russian Direct Investment Fund, which is marketing the vaccine abroad, declined to comment.

-REUTERS

October 12 2020 - 12:32

High infection rates starting to hit older patients - UK health official

High COVID-19 infections rates amongst young people are now beginning to spread to older age groups in parts of England, Deputy Chief Medical Office Jonathan Van-Tam said on Monday, predicting the pattern would continue elsewhere.

"This is, again, of a significant concern ... because, of course, the elderly suffer a much worse course with COVID-19. They are admitted to hospital for longer periods, and they are more difficult to save," Van-Tam said at a government briefing presenting charts on the spread of the virus.

-REUTERS

October 12 2020 - 11:45

Kremlin says Russia able to be flexible in COVID-19 response despite surge

The Kremlin said on Monday that Russia could afford to be more flexible in its response to the COVID-19 pandemic than earlier this year when it imposed a lockdown.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia had more room for manoeuvre this time round because of better available treatment methods, more hospital beds, and a tried and tested system in place to tackle the virus.

Russia, which has no lockdown currently, recorded a new record increase in coronavirus cases on Sunday. Earlier on Monday, new cases remained close to that level.

-REUTERS

October 12 2020 - 09:50

Russia reports 13,592 new coronavirus cases, 125 deaths

Russia reported 13,592 new coronavirus cases on Monday, almost the most recorded in a single day since the pandemic began, pushing the national tally to 1,312,310.

Officials also said 125 people had died in the previous 24 hours, pushing the official death toll to 22,722.

Russia, which has a total population of around 145 million, has recorded the fourth highest number of infections in the world since the start of the pandemic.

-REUTERS

October 12 2020 - 09:32

Novel coronavirus can last 28 days on glass, currency, Australian study finds

The virus that causes Covid-19 can survive on banknotes, glass and stainless steel for up to 28 days, much longer than the flu virus, Australian researchers said on Monday, highlighting the need for cleaning and handwashing to combat the virus.

Findings from the study done by Australia's national science agency, CSIRO, appear to show that in a very controlled environment the virus remained infectious for longer than other studies have found.

October 12 2020 - 09:18

'I can't get it and I can't give it': Donald Trump claims he is now immune from Covid-19

President Donald Trump will try to put his bout with Covid-19 behind him when he returns to the campaign trail on Monday, beginning a three-week sprint to the November 3 election with a rally in the vital battleground state of Florida.

The event at an airport in Sanford, Florida, will be Trump's first campaign rally since he disclosed on October 2 that he had tested positive for Covid-19. Trump, who spent three days in the hospital for treatment, said on Sunday he was fully recovered and no longer infectious, but did not say directly whether he had tested negative for the virus.

COVID-19 WRAP | SA out of the top 10 list of most Covid-19 cases in the world

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