Publications
Partners
- Gauteng has recorded 741 164 confirmed Covid-19 cases.
- 14 133 deaths have also been recorded in the province.
- The province says while cases approach a peak of the third wave, high numbers were still a concern.
The Gauteng provincial government says daily Covid-19 cases in the province are approaching the peak of the third wave.
While this may be, the high number of infections in the province were still a concern, the provincial government said on Friday in its weekly Provincial Coronavirus Command Council report.
As of 8 July, Gauteng, the epicenter of the virus in the country, had a total of 741 164 confirmed cases. Provincial deaths as a result of Covid-19 stood at 14 133.
The provincial government said hospital admissions continued to increase, placing a strain on both the public and private healthcare systems.
READ | Johannesburg Mayor Geoff Makhubo has died of Covid-19
It added that it would continue monitoring the situation in the next week and repurpose more hospital beds where it was necessary to create additional capacity.
"As the number of infections and number of hospitalisations increase, so has the number of deaths. This means more of us are losing our loved ones, friends and colleagues," the province said.
There were 102 857 active cases in Gauteng.
A total of 488 884 contacts have been identified in in the province and 98% of them have been traced to date.
The province said 95 080 contacts were tested and 50% of them were positive for Covid-19.
There were currently 8 606 patients admitted to hospital due to Covid19; 1 870 were in ICU and High Care while 6 736 occupied general wards.
ALSO READ | Covid-19: Gauteng records deadliest week on record amid third wave driven by Delta variant - data
Gauteng has so far vaccinated 718 198 people, including healthcare workers.
"As at 8 July 2021, a total of 521 569 people who are 60 years and older have been vaccinated, which translates to only 39% of the targeted population of 1 300 000. Since the start of the vaccination programme, 126 982 Healthcare workers have been vaccinated," the province said in the report.
Meanwhile, 64 627 education workers have been inoculated.
The province has 195 sites, including those where education vaccinations are taking place.
It said its sites accepted walk-ins from frontline workers and people aged 60 and above.
People who are not registered on EVDS are assisted with the process.
ALSO READ | Covid-19: Mediclinic experiencing 'tremendous demand', suspends non-emergency surgeries
"We urge more residents who are 60 years and older to register for vaccination. The more people who get vaccinated for Covid-19, the more we will get closer to the end of the pandemic.
"Government would also like to thank the general public for their patience and support during the roll-out of the vaccination programme."
The province has urged people to continue adhering to Covid-19 protocols and cautioned against complacency when people were around family members.
It noted that it was also observing an increase in household outbreak cases.
