Cape Town – South Africa’s National Coronavirus Command Council (NCCC) says the country is set to stay at adjusted Level 1 lockdown – at least for now.
The announcement comes at a time when the country is battling the Covid-19 Omicron variant.
“The Council has directed the department to closely monitor the rising Covid-19 infections,” Reuters quoted the health department as saying.
The department said it would also track hospital admissions, mortality and recovery rates.
Health Minister Joe Phaahla appealed to the unvaccinated and to those who are not fully vaccinated to get their jabs, especially if they are planning to travel to infection hotspot areas, EWN reported.
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“We call upon all travellers, especially those who are unvaccinated or partly vaccinated coming from areas declared hotspots, to get vaccinated before hitting the roads to protect their families and friends they will be visiting during this period associated with large social gatherings like parties and weddings, which can be ‘super spreader’ events that carry a huge risk of transmission of the virus”, Phaahla said, according to the report.
South Africa on Wednesday reported its highest daily tally of new coronavirus cases since the start of the pandemic, just weeks after announcing the discovery of the Omicron strain.
The tally of 26 976 Covid infections topped the previous record of 26 485 on July 3, at the height of the country’s third wave caused by the Delta variant.
The highly mutated Omicron strain was first detected in the country last month and sparked global panic over fears that it is more contagious than other variants.
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Additional reporting by AFP
