JOHANNESBURG, South Africa – South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said Sunday the country will return to a ban of the sales of alcohol immediately to reduce the volume of trauma patients so that hospitals have more beds to treat Covid-19 patients.
Confronted by surging hospitalisations due to the coronavirus, South Africa is also reinstating a night curfew to reduce traffic accidents and has made it mandatory for all residents to wear face masks in public.
Ramaphosa said that top health officials warn of impending shortages of hospital beds and medical oxygen as South Africa reaches a peak of Covid-19 cases, expected between the end of July and September.
South Africa’s rapid increase in reported cases has made it one of the world’s centers for Covid-19, now the ninth country most affected by the disease, according to Johns Hopkins University.
The country has reported increases of more than 10,000 confirmed cases for several days and the latest daily increase was nearly 13,500. South Africa accounts for 40 percent of all the confirmed cases in Africa, with 264,184, including 3,971 deaths, acccording to the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“As we head towards the peak of infections, it is vital that we do not burden our clinics and hospitals with alcohol-related injuries that could have been avoided,” Ramaphosa said in a televised address to the nation.
“This is a fight to save every life, and we need to save every bed. The coronavirus storm is far fiercer and more destructive than any we have known.”
The nighttime curfew will last from 9PM to 4AM and take effect from Monday, apart from for those travelling to or from work or seeking medical help.
Regulations on the wearing of masks will be strengthened, but the country will remain on the third level of its five-level coronavirus alert system.
Family visits and social activities remain banned.
Ramaphosa said scientists had presented models that forecast between 40,000 and 50,000 coronavirus deaths before the end of the year, adding: “We must make it our single most important task to prove these projections wrong.” – AP/Reuters
