The COVID-19 death toll now stands at over 16 000 after 126 new fatalities were recorded on Tuesday.
KwaZulu-Natal recorded the most deaths after 54 people lost the battle to the respiratory disease.
Meanwhile, 45 deaths were recorded in Gauteng, 17 in the Western Cape, and five each in the Eastern Cape and the North West.
This brings the total number of COVID-19 related deaths to 16 118.
"We extend our condolences to the loved ones of the departed and thank the healthcare workers who treated the deceased patients," Health Minister, Dr Zweli Mkhize, said.
The cumulative number of detected COVID-19 cases is now 663 282 after 1 346 new cases were identified.
The recovery rate now stands at 89.4%, after 592 904 patients recuperated.
The data is based on the 4 064 117 tests performed, with 16 394 having been done in the last 24 hours.
Globally, there have been 31 174 627 confirmed cases of COVID-19, including 962 613 deaths reported to the World Health Organisation (WHO).
According to the WHO’s latest data, from 14 - 20 September, there were almost two million new cases of COVID-19, which represents a 6% increase compared to the previous week.
This is the highest number of reported cases in a single week since the beginning of the epidemic, WHO said.
“During the same period, there was a 10% decrease in the number of deaths, with 36 764 deaths reported in the past seven days,” the organisation said.
Except for the African region, an increase in the weekly case incidence was reported across all WHO regions in the last seven days.
“For the last six weeks, the African region has continued to report a decrease in both COVID-19 cases and deaths. During the past week, 33 of the 49 affected countries reported either a decrease in deaths or no deaths.”
South Africa remains the African country with the highest number of new cases and new deaths, followed by Ethiopia, Algeria and Mozambique.
The region of the Americas continues to carry the highest burden of COVID-19 globally, accounting for over 38% of all new cases reported in the past seven days, although the region reported a 22% decrease in new deaths.
WHO has noted the greatest rise in deaths in the past week, with a 27% increase compared to the previous week in the European region. – SAnews.gov.za
