COVID-19: Cape Town warns of second wave, as ‘non-compliance’ rises
The City of Cape Town has issued a stern statement this week, urging its citizens to ‘keep their guard up’ against COVID-19. Officials representing the Mother City fear that a surge in ‘non-compliance’ with lockdown rules could trigger a second wave in the Western Cape, where the pandemic first spread rapidly in South Africa.
Will Cape Town face a second wave of infections?
Mayoral Committee Member for Community Services and Health, Zahid Badroodien, has reported that some locals are no longer wearing their masks, and social distancing protocols are being ignored by many businesses. The councillor fears the hard work that went in to suppressing the spread of COVID-19 could soon be undone:
“Our Environmental Health Practitioners are particularly concerned about the number of people who are going about their business in public without masks, as well as crowd management in shops, malls, and other public amenities.”
“Cape Town worked very hard to overcome the peak of the pandemic so that we could start focusing on rebuilding lives, communities and the economy. All of this hard work will be undermined if we drop our collective guard.”
Zahid Badroodien
COVID-19 in South Africa – the threat is still here
One thing the City has struggled with is the notion that COVID-19 ‘has been and gone’. Transmission rates have collapsed in South Africa, but with anything from 500 – 2 000 new cases being registered here each day over the past month, the threat from this killer virus remains extremely high. Badroodien is cautious that a second wave could hurt Cape Town badly.
“There are too many anecdotes about the pandemic being a thing of the past – this is not true, particularly if one looks at the many countries where lockdowns have had to be reintroduced as a result of a second wave of infections.”
“Cape Town and South Africa needs to take heed from these cautionary tales and do everything possible to mitigate the risk of a second wave here. We, therefore, urge the public to continue abiding by the health and hygiene protocols and to wear a mask at all times in public – to help avoid a second wave of infections locally.”
Zahid Badroodien
The City of Cape Town’s Health Department is reporting an increase in incidents of non-adherence to COVID-19 protocols.
— City of Cape Town (@CityofCT) October 5, 2020
Read more: https://t.co/nbD9ht97iQ #CTNews pic.twitter.com/1RAnHwkGJd
No comments: