SA Covid-19 cases hit 10 000, over 5 100 in Western Cape

The number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in South Africa has surpassed the psychological 10 000 mark.

Health Minister Zweli Mkhize announced on Sunday evening that the tally now stands at 10 015.

With most of the newly reported cases coming out of the Western Cape over the weekend, the province is now home to over half of the country’s confirmed cases (5 168). The province is growing as the epicentre of the pandemic with 98 of SA’s 194 confirmed deaths.

Mkhize reported 595 new cases on Sunday, 359 of which were from the Western Cape. He also confirmed eight new deaths – four in Gauteng, three in the Western Cape and one in the Eastern Cape.

Mkhize highlighted that as at May 9, there were 4 173 recoveries in South Africa, 1 607 of which were in the Western Cape. Gauteng had 1 952 cases and 1 247 recoveries. KwaZulu-Natal had 1 353 cases, with 606 recoveries. The Eastern Cape has also seen an upsurge in cases, which now stand at 1 218 with 519 recoveries.

“We note with concern that the Western Cape and Eastern Cape combined comprise 84% of the total of new cases,” said Mkhize.

Meanwhile, the health minister also reported that a record 17 257 Covid-19 tests had been done over the 24-hour period until Sunday evening. He said 431 336 tests had been done countrywide as at Sunday evening.

South Africa’s increase in Covid-19 reported daily cases, averaging just under 600 for the past three days, has been expected with the relaxation of lockdown measures. Some experts predict that the country will see infections even growing by up to 10% daily. The country is only expecting to see infections peak around August and September.