SA records less than 4 000 new COVID-19 cases, with 139 deaths

Friday, January 21, 2022

South Africa recorded close to 4 000 new COVID-19 infections, the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) said on Thursday.

According to the NICD’s latest statistics, 3 962 more people tested positive for Coronavirus, pushing the tally to 3 572 860 since the first case was detected in South Africa.

The data shows that the increase represents a 10.6% positivity rate, with Gauteng accounting for 928 infections logged in the past 24 hours.

The province is followed by 813 cases in the Western Cape, 681 in KwaZulu-Natal and 412 in Limpopo.

Due to the ongoing audit exercise by the Department of Health, the country reported 139 deaths, of which 31 occurred in the past 24 to 48 hours. This brings the death toll to 93 846 to date.

Meanwhile, hospital admissions went up by 135 to 7 059 patients who are currently receiving treatment at health institutions across the country.

The NICD has encouraged South Africans to continue to get vaccinated for COVID-19, wear masks, gather in ventilated spaces, avoid unnecessary gatherings, keep a social distance of one metre or more and wash hands regularly in the day with soap and water.

According to the World Health Organisation, there are now 336 790 193 confirmed global cases of COVID-19 and 5 560 718 deaths reported to the agency. – SAnews.gov.za