Chronicle Editor
Cape Town — South Africa is nearing a million Covid-19 cases as the cumulative total hit 994 911 on Saturday.
Health Minister Zweli Mkhize reported 11 552 new coronavirus cases on Saturday and 245 more Covid-19 related deaths.
The Eastern Cape recorded 118 deaths, Gauteng 12, Kwa-Zulu Natal 57, Mpumalanga 3 and Western Cape 55, which brings the total to 26 521 deaths.
A cumulative 6 415 824 tests have been conducted with 37 817 tests completed since the last report. Recoveries currently stand at 839 194.
More than 79,85 million people have been reported to be infected by the novel coronavirus globally and 1 752 116 have died, according to the latest Reuters tally.
Meanwhile, A fire at a hospital north of Cairo on Saturday killed seven coronavirus patients, security and judicial sources said.
The blaze in the intensive care unit of the hospital in Obour district, on the outskirts of Cairo, also injured five other people, the sources said.
It was not immediately clear what caused the fire, the sources said, adding prosecutors had launched an investigation into the incident.
Firefighters were dispatched to the facility and stopped the blaze from spreading, local media reported.
Egypt has so far registered 130 126 Covid-19 cases, including 7 309 fatalities.
Health facilities in the North African country, like elsewhere, have been strained by the mounting number of infections.
In June, a fire at a hospital in Egypt’s coastal city of Alexandria killed seven coronavirus patients and injured seven others.
Online Reporter