As offices begin to close and we prepare for the upcoming holiday period, the number of cases for COVID-19 in South Africa has risen sharply. This according to the latest report from the National Department of Health (NDoH), which confirms that 23 884 new cases have been recorded in the past 24 hours.
Fortunately there is no confusion with this figure as there was earlier in the week, with the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) reporting the same figure, confirming that there has indeed been a surge in infections over the past 24 hours.
The NICD also notes that Gauteng remains the epicentre as far as infections go, with it accounting for 8 685 of the newly recorded cases. It is followed by KwaZulu-Natal with 5 205 and the Western Cape with 3 180.
Should numbers continue to rise at this rate, it is unclear what measures government will take as regards lockdown regulations.
We are also yet to hear from the Presidency as far as the discussions over mandatory vaccinations for certain situations in the country, so the lack of communication as we head into the peak of the festive period is concerning.
As for the other key figures in the NDoH, the total number of infections recorded to date is now 3 204 642. Added to this is 24 fatalities, as the death toll related to COVID-19 in South Africa rises to 90 172.
Looking at the vaccine rollout, 102 398 jabs were administered in the past 24 hours, but it is unclear what this recent surge will do to turnouts at vaccine sites across the country. As of 17:00 on 14th December, a total of 27 304 475.
The full outlook for COVID-19 in South Africa follows on below:
| Provinces | Confirmed Cases | Recoveries | Active cases | Deaths |
| Western Cape | 540 733 | 505 357 | 15 112 | 20 264 |
| Eastern Cape | 302 468 | 279 233 | 7 991 | 15 244 |
| Northern Cape | 95 619 | 90 637 | 2 548 | 2 434 |
| Free State | 174 757 | 158 103 | 9 533 | 7 121 |
| KwaZulu-Natal | 548 250 | 504 220 | 29 216 | 14 814 |
| North West | 166 915 | 149 638 | 12 923 | 4 354 |
| Mpumalanga | 165 313 | 154 903 | 8 389 | 2 021 |
| Gauteng | 1 078 223 | 980 206 | 78 207 | 19 810 |
| Limpopo | 132 364 | 121 273 | 6 981 | 4 110 |
| Unknown | 0 | |||
| TOTAL | 3 204 642 | 2 943 570 | 170 900 | 90 172 |
As always, in order to stay up to date with the spread of COVID-19 in South Africa and abroad, we advise the following materials and platforms:
- COVID-19 Connect on WhatsApp – add 0600 123 456 as a contact and say “Hi”.
- World Health Organisation
- SA Coronavirus website
- SA Government
- SA Presidency
[Image – Photo by Markus Winkler on Unsplash]
