This is not a time to be complacent, says Prof Karim as Covid-19 ‘takes off’ in KZN

Amid concerns that KwaZulu-Natal may become SA’s next coronavirus epicentre, Covid-19 ministerial advisory committee chair professor Salim Abdool Karim has warned against complacency.

Karim said that from his analysis of the data, KwaZulu-Natal — which recorded the first case of Covid-19 in SA in March — “is my concern”. This comes as health minister Dr Zweli Mkhize also cautioned that the province could “take over from Gauteng”.

Karim said: “Western Cape has hit their original peak and they are now at the plateau of their peak. It’s too early to tell whether Gauteng has reached its peak. It could go higher. It just depends on what is happening on the ground and how people are behaving. If people are keeping on their masks, infections should start settling down and come down.”

He said KwaZulu-Natal’s infection rate started “taking off” after restrictions were eased last month. “KwaZulu-Natal has a bigger population compared to the Western Cape. Density will play a role. Fortunately we are not as dense as Gauteng.”

Karim appealed to communities to continue exercising stringent precautions.

“This is not a time to be complacent, this is not a time to wear your mask around your neck. The sooner each of us takes responsibility to follow the rules and encourage others to follow the rules, that's how we are going to get this thing under control.”

On Thursday, KwaZulu-Natal had 50,521 positive cases and 516 deaths with about 2,200 new infections being recorded daily.