South Africa’s Ministry of Health said on the 23rd that the second wave of COVID-19 is spreading “at an exponential level” in South Africa. The wave of the epidemic is likely to be caused by the mutant coronavirus, so the government is considering introducing stricter restrictions.
The second wave of epidemic is coming rapidly.
Statistics show that on the 23rd, 14,046 new confirmed cases were confirmed in South Africa, with a positive test rate of 26%, with a total of 954,258 confirmed cases. At the same time, the number of new deaths in a single day reached a new high of 411, with a cumulative death to 25,657.
South Africa experienced the first wave of epidemic peak at the end of July this year, with the number of new confirmed cases in a single day of about 13,000. Subsequently, the epidemic gradually stabilized, and the number of new cases per day dropped to about 2,000 and lasted for several weeks. However, since the middle and late November, the epidemic has rebounded.
At the end of November, there were also cases of COVID-19 group infections in South Africa.
High school graduates across the country held carnival parties to celebrate graduation, and even a large number of students participated in it across provinces without taking protective measures such as wearing masks.
The health department of South Africa’s economic center Gauteng said that there were more than 1,300 students at the documented inter-provincial parties in the province alone, of which nearly 1,000 were infected with the novel coronavirus.
With the Christmas holiday approaching, millions of people are expected to travel for vacation or return home in South Africa. Medical experts believe that it is almost a foregone conclusion to accelerate the spread of the virus for some time to come.
South Africa’s Ministry of Health said that the second wave of the epidemic was developing faster than the first wave. Therefore, the government is considering adopting stricter restrictions.
The second wave of the epidemic has also put heavy pressure on the South African health system. Many hospitals are facing a shortage of beds, especially in intensive care unit beds. As a result, the hospital had to temporarily adjust the bed and medical staff, and postponed a large number of non-emergency operations.
Virus mutation attracts attention
The mutant virus found in South Africa has also attracted attention.
The South African Ministry of Health previously said that recent clinical epidemiological observations have found that more and more young South Africans are infected with the novel coronavirus.
The study found a kind called 501. V2″ variant strain of COVID-19 may be one of the reasons for the above situation and the accelerated spread of the virus.
Tulio de Oliveira, one of the discoverers of the mutant virus and head of the research innovation and sequencing platform in KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa, said that it is the summer in South Africa and is not suitable for the spread of the novel coronavirus.
It is unusual for the epidemic to rebound significantly at this time. Therefore, the researchers have strengthened the genome monitoring of the virus and found viral mutations.
In order to prevent the introduction of mutant viruses, many countries, including Mauritius, Switzerland, Germany, Turkey, etc., have banned flights from South Africa.
