COVID-19 WRAP | Covid-19: 733 new cases, 56 deaths in SA in the past 24 hours, NICD says

October 15 2021 - 19:35

Covid-19: 733 new cases, 56 deaths in SA in the past 24 hours, NICD says

There were 733 new Covid-19 cases and 56 deaths recorded across SA in the past 24 hours, according to the latest National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) data on Friday.

This means that there have been 2,915,560 confirmed cases and 88,562 confirmed fatalities since the outbreak of the coronavirus in the country in March last year.

Of the new cases, most were in the Western Cape (161), followed by KwaZulu-Natal (147) and Gauteng (111). No other province recorded more than 100 new infections in the past day.

October 15 2021 - 14:19

50% capacity at stadiums for sport events on the cards if Covid-19 rate stays stable

SA is pushing ahead with plans to reopen stadiums for sport events as the country’s “Return to Play” programme gathers steam.

Tuesday marked the first step in the programme when 2,000 fans took up their seats at the FNB Stadium in Johannesburg for Bafana Bafana's World Cup qualifier against Ethiopia, which SA won 1-0 after visiting captain Getaneh Kebede scored an own goal.

Speaking at the weekly Covid-19 briefing on Friday, health minister Dr Joe Phaahla said the government was committed to the return of “open life”.

October 15 2021 - 09:22

Children aged 12-17 set to get coronavirus vaccinations

Children between the ages of 12 and 17 years will be eligible for Covid-19 vaccinations from October 20. 

Speaking at the weekly Covid-19 briefing on Friday, health minister Joe Phaahla said the electronic registration system would be open from Wednesday with vaccinations starting the same day.

Parents would not be required to give consent for their children to be vaccinated as the Children’s Act provided for 12-17 year-olds to give their own consent for any medical treatment, said acting health director-general Nicholas Crisp.

October 15 2021 - 08:30

President Joe Biden says 66 million unvaccinated 'still unacceptably high'

President Joe Biden touted the success of mandates in spurring vaccination against Covid-19 in the US, but said more needed to be done to get the 66 million people who are eligible yet still unvaccinated to get the shot.

October 15 2021 - 08:00

Krugersdorp doctor's daily voice notes keep Covid-19 families in touch

For those lucky enough not to have experienced the pain of dropping a loved one at hospital and not being able to go in with them, imagine waiting at home for days, weeks and even months without any knowledge of their condition.

October 15 2021 - 07:30

FDA advisers back Moderna booster shots for some

A panel of expert advisers to the U.S. FDA unanimously voted to recommend booster shots of Moderna’s Covid-19 vaccine for Americans aged 65 and older and those at high risk of severe illness or occupational exposure to the virus.

October 15 2021 - 07:00

Is it safe to use a communal hand sanitiser?

If you feel uneasy about touching a bottle of communal hand sanitiser in a public place like a shopping mall because you think it might be unsafe, the World Health Organisation (WHO) says there is nothing to worry about.

“Once you have sanitised your hands you have disinfected them from any germs that may have been on the bottle. If everyone uses sanitiser in a public place, such as a supermarket entrance, the risk of germs on communal items will be lower and keep everyone safe,” says the organisation.

Hand sanitisers have become popular globally since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic last year.

October 15 2021 - 06:30

Sydney to open for international travellers without quarantine

Sydney will open up to fully vaccinated international travellers from Nov. 1 without the need for quarantine, the country's most populous state said on Friday, bringing forward a full return of overseas travel.

Australia closed its borders in March 2020 in response to the pandemic, allowing entry almost exclusively to only citizens and permanent residents who are required to undergo a mandatory two-week hotel quarantine at their own expense."

We need to rejoin the world. We can't live here in hermit kingdom. We've got to open up," New South Wales Premier Dominic Perrottet said.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said earlier this month overseas travel would return once 80% of people in a particular state are fully vaccinated, but would be available initially for Australians and would require home quarantine.

However, Perrottet said it was time open up the state to help drive economic growth, which has been badly damaged by the state's near four-month COVID-19 lockdown.

"Hotel quarantine, home quarantine is a thing of the past, we are opening Sydney and New South Wales to the world," he said.

New South Wales is expected to reach 80% full vaccination levels in the adult population this weekend, well ahead of other states, drastically slowing infection numbers.

Perrottet said those arriving into Sydney will first have to show proof of vaccination and a negative Covid-19 test prior to boarding a plane to Australia, he said.

Morrison's office was not immediately available to comment on the New South Wales plan.

The removal of quarantine requirements will aid international travel into Australia and is likely to be welcomed by airlines.

New South Wales reported 399 Covid-19 cases on Friday, well down from the state's pandemic high of 1,599 in early September.

Neighbouring Victoria state, where vaccination rates are lower, reported 2,179 new locally acquired cases, down from a record 2,297 a day earlier.

Meanwhile, Canberra, the national capital, on Friday exited its more than two-month lockdown, allowing cafes, pubs and gyms to reopen with strict social distancing rules.

The country's overall coronavirus numbers are still relatively low, with some 139,000 cases and 1,506 deaths.

Meanwhile, the Australian Medical Association, which represents the country's doctors, on Friday warned its modelling showed the country's health system will not be able to cope with an influx of coronavirus patients after the country reopens.

Reuters

October 15 2021 - 06:00

'They're really going to struggle': How children orphaned by Covid-19 are battling to cope

“I always heard of people dying but the moment it affected my family, reality struck that this is real.” 

These were the words of Cape Town teenager Saadiq Daniels after the “sudden and unexpected” loss of three family members to Covid-19 — all within a month. The 16-year-old first lost an aunt in July and, weeks later, his uncle and his wife — the latter within a day of each other. Now he's opened up on the pain, sadness and shock he and his family still grapple with months after.

The same pain and sadness felt by more than 100,000 South African children who've either lost a parent or primary caregiver to the virus.