We enter another weekend with COVID-19 in South Africa looming large. The past week has seen an increase in the number of newly recorded cases, while winter temperatures kick in and there is the prospect of continued loadshedding to contend with.

It therefore looks like South Africans are taking hits from all sides this week.

Looking a bit more closely at the latest report from the National Department of Health (NDoH), the past 24 hours has seen 7 238 new cases recorded. This brings the total number of infections recorded locally to date to 3 915 258.

The department also notes that 12 fatalities have been recorded too, as the death toll related to COVID-19 in South Africa has climbed to 100 898.

As for other key figures in the report, the recovery rate remains at 95.4 percent, with 3 733 569 recoveries recorded and more than 24.99 million tests having been conducted so far.

Shifting to the vaccine rollout, the past 24 hours has seen 56 743 jabs administered, with 20 857 of these being booster shots. As of 17:00 on 19th May 2022, a total of 35 679 922 vaccines have been administered across the country, with an estimated 19 013 426 people fully vaccinated at this stage.

The full outlook for COVID-19 in South Africa follows on below:

• 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 Tai’s Captures on Unsplash]