Plans for mass fatality
Environmental health practitioners of the Garden
Route District Municipality (GRDM) will start conducting home visits to people who have tested positive for Covid-19 in an effort to reduce the infection rate, while planning for mass fatalities has begun.
The practitioners’ task is to ensure that positive cases adhere to the rules of self-isolation, said Garden Route Mayor Memory Booysen in his weekly update.
On Wednesday 17 June at 13:00, a total of 441 people have tested positive in the Garden Route and Klein Karoo. Three people died in George in the past week, bringing the total number of
Covid deaths in the district to 10 six in George, two in Knysna, one in Mossel Bay and one in Stilbaai.
George Hospital has nine Covid-19 patients of whom four are in ICU. One staff member who tested positive is still in the initial 14-day isolation period and is doing fine. At Mediclinic George two patients are in ICU and two in a general ward. One staff member has tested positive for the coronavirus, but she is doing well, according to hospital manager Kassie Karstens.
Mass fatality planning
Zee Briggles, district director of health, said on Monday planning for the appropriate and dignified management of mass fatalities has started. He stressed the importance of following up on and supporting cases who are in isolation or quarantine. One of the challenges is to get the positive cases to quarantine sites in a way that does not cause anxiety. “We need to maximise our occupational health staff to ensure that tracking and tracing does happen and isolating is adhered to.” They are seeing fewer people referred for testing from screening, but more cases are being picked up because of increased visits to healthcare centres. The number of businesses with positive cases is increasing and often all the necessary precautions are not in place.
Masks donated
Booysen thanked the public for donating 459 cloth face masks that will be distributed to community members who cannot afford to buy their own. The donors are Lee Neto, Gerty Bezuidenhoudt, Jenny Streiger, Lorrain Gerberg, Khutala Maki Gewegwe, Penny Tyson, Elize Loots, Bev Pollocks, Lisa Murray and Rohan Compion.
Joseph’s Storehouse
At the weekend, Booysen visited the Shofar Christian Church in George where the Love George non-profit organisation has launched a project in collaboration with local churches, called Joseph’s Storehouse, that has played a pivotal role in feeding the most vulnerable communities in the region. Here the mayor also met members of the George Junior City Council that had sourced various donations for the needy.