Covid-19 can still resurge – Mkhize

POST-COVID WORLD: ‘WE’RE NOT OUT OF THE WOODS’

World Health Organisation commends SA for decline in new cases.

Health Minister Zweli Mkhize has warned against complacency as South Africa moves to Covid-19 alert Level 1, saying containment measures remain in place as the pandemic could resurge.

“We are not out of the woods. The most important thing is we still have about 10 000 patients, people who are positive a week and we also know that there are more than the 10 000 because the numbers are much higher,” the minister has said.

As of Saturday, on the eve of

Level 1, South Africa recorded an additional 13 fatalities, with the total number of identified cases standing at 661 211 and 1 555 new cases identified since Saturday.

The World Health Organisation has commended SA for the decline in the number of new Covid-19 cases, with fewer than 200 cases per day compared with two months ago, when about 12 000 new cases were being recorded daily.

Mkhize said the move to Level 1 did not mean the period of the Covid-19 pandemic was over. It meant rebuilding the economy and bringing some normality to social lives.

“That is what [Level 1] means but the new normality is no longer the same as before so there is a pre-Covid world and there is post-Covid world. We are now in the post-Covid world… we have to make sure that we take precautions. This Covid-19 can still resurge and therefore we should not lose the message and be complacent, we still have to fight.” He said the use of masks, sanitisers and social distancing was still going to be part of everyday life.

“We still have the virus among us and the real question is for us to always be alert and not see a resurgence like we have in other countries,” the minister said yesterday.

According to Mkhize, South Africa has recorded more than 660 000 Covid-19 cases, of which 590 000 have recovered, and more than 15 000 people have died from Covid-19-related illnesses.

Move to Level 1 did not mean Covid-19 was over