COVID-19 WRAP | SA records 12,045 Covid-19 cases in 24 hours, with KZN still the epicentre

August 27 2021 - 19:49

SA records 12,045 Covid-19 cases in 24 hours, with KZN still the epicentre

KwaZulu-Natal again accounted for a third of all new Covid-19 cases in SA in the past 24 hours, the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) said on Friday.

There were 12,045 new Covid-19 infections recorded in the past day, with 3,905 of them in KwaZulu-Natal. This was nearly 1,400 cases more than the second-worst hit province, the Western Cape, which recorded 2,553 cases. The Eastern Cape (1,766) and Gauteng (1,121) were the only other provinces to break the 1,000-case mark.

According to the NICD, using health department data, there were also 361 Covid-19 related deaths recorded in the same period.

August 27 2021 - 17:37

'I’m wishing it away': ICU doctor on Covid-19 front line speaks of 4th wave

Exhaustion and anxiety are hitting healthcare workers hard as they continue to work long hours on the front line of the coronavirus pandemic.

Intensive care doctor De Vries Basson, who has also put in the work and time, is appealing to the public for more support in fighting Covid-19.

“This third wave’s intensity is much higher and we’re seeing much younger patients being admitted. They are critically ill,” he said.

August 27 2021 — 13:04

Australia’s 'public health enemy number one' arrested for not isolating

Australian police have arrested a man dubbed "public health enemy number one" for allegedly failing to isolate, breaking lockdown regulations and putting the public at risk.

The Daily Mail reports that Anthony Karam, 27, tested positive for Covid-19 on August 14 after catching the virus from one of his brothers.

The news website quoted a source close to the family as saying Karam disappeared because he was worried the police would "harass" him.

August 27 2021 — 10:30

Young adults give vaccine rollout a shot in the arm

The enthusiasm among younger South Africans to be vaccinated has driven the daily numbers up again, with the average number of vaccinations topping 240,000 daily this week after the rollout opened to all adults, health minister Dr Joe Phaahla said on Friday.

More than 560,000 people aged 18 to 34 registered for vaccination on the first day they were eligible, August 20, and 81,000 of them were vaccinated on the same day.

“The response of the young people has been quite overwhelming,” said Phaahla.

August 27 2021 — 08:00

Sassa will pay at least six million R350 grant beneficiaries by the end of August

At least six million beneficiaries will receive their Covid-19 social relief of distress (SDR) grants by the end of August, the SA Social Security Agency (Sassa) said on Thursday.

The agency kick-started the first batch of the payments on Wednesday after the grant was reintroduced for the second phase of payouts last month. Sassa told TimesLIVE it will pay out R2.1bn this month alone.

August 27 2021 — 07:18

How long until we reach herd immunity?

As Gauteng premier David Makhura sets a goal to vaccinate 100,000 people a day, many have asked how long that target will need to be maintained before SA reaches herd immunity.

The government set a target to vaccinate 40 million people, or 67% of the population, to reach the point where enough people are immune to the coronavirus to prevent it spreading unchecked.

To date SA has vaccinated 11.6-million citizens, which is 29% of the goal.

August 27 2021 — 06:30

New Zealand eases nationwide lockdown but Auckland shut off

New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern eased the tough nationwide lockdown measures on Friday, though businesses and schools will still be closed and its biggest city Auckland will remain shut for longer.

Ardern said all of New Zealand, except Auckland and Northland, will move one step lower to alert level 3 from Tuesday, August 31.

Under level 3, businesses can only operate for click and collect or contactless services. Bars and restaurants remain shut except for takeaways.

Public venues remain closed, while crowds at wedding and funerals are limited to 10 people.

“This is a wait and watch level,” Ardern said.

The prime minister added that the country was possibly starting to see a plateau in cases.

Auckland and neighbouring Northland will remain in full level 4 lockdown, possibly for another 2 weeks, Ardern said.

This means Auckland, the epicentre of the outbreak, will be cut off from the rest of the country for now.

The country reported 70 new cases of Covid-19 in the community on Friday, all in the epicentre Auckland, taking the total number of cases in the latest outbreak to 347.

New Zealand has been largely free of the virus since last year, barring a small number of cases in February, but that changed last week after an outbreak of the Delta variant erupted in Auckland, prompting Ardern to order the lockdown.

The country has about 2,900 confirmed cases of Covid-19 so far and 26 related deaths. 

Reuters

August 27 2021 — 06:15

Contaminant in Moderna vaccines suspected to be metallic particles

A contaminant found in a batch of Moderna Inc's Covid-19 vaccines delivered to Japan is believed to be a metallic particle, Japanese public broadcaster NHK reported, citing sources at the health ministry.

Japan on Thursday suspended the use of 1.63 million doses  shipped to 863 vaccination centres nationwide, more than a week after the domestic distributor, Takeda Pharmaceutical, received reports of contaminants in some vials.

The NHK report, published late on Thursday, cited ministry sources as saying the particle reacted to magnets and was therefore suspected to be a metal. Moderna has described it as “particulate matter” that did not pose a safety or efficacy issue.

An official at the health ministry said the identity of the contaminant has not been confirmed.

News of the contaminant could provide a fresh setback for Japan's inoculation drive as it struggles to persuade many — particularly among the youth — to get vaccinated.

Reuters

August 27 2021 — 06:00

‘Come see the dead bodies’: health minister livid at anti-vaxxers

As they intubate patients, doctors and nurses in the Western Cape hear “regrets being expressed” by those same patients who chose not to be vaccinated and are now fighting for their lives.

The provincial health minister, Dr Nomafrench Mbombo, who was a clinician for a long time before she became a politician, is gobsmacked by non-expert opinions undermining vaccine efforts in the province.

She said on Thursday: “In all my career previously as a healthcare worker and clinician, then as an educator and a researcher, and now as a politician, I have never seen a disease that has so many people becoming not only opinionated, but also believing that they’re experts.”