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A new variant of the Covid-19 virus is driving a massive resurgence of the disease in South Africa, with experts warning that the country is likely facing a much larger second wave.
During the summer, the pandemic hit South Africa harder than any other African nation. Hospitals were overwhelmed and at their peak, authorities were registering more than 13,000 new cases a day.
Now a new variant of the virus, known as 501.V2, is driving a powerful second wave, accounting for about 80 to 90 percent of new cases in Africa’s most industrialized nation.
The strain is different from the British one, but it is similar in that it is spreading much faster than the original virus.
“It is still very early, but at this stage preliminary data suggests that the virus that now dominates in the second wave is spreading faster than the first wave,” said Professor Salim Abdool Karim, chairman of the government’s Ministerial Advisory Committee on Covid-19. , said.
South Africa may see “many more cases” in the new wave than it experienced in the first outbreak of the disease, Professor Karim warned, adding that when nasal swabs were taken from patients with the new variant, much more viral load was found. in samples.
“I will only speculate the following: the … higher viral load in these swabs may translate into higher transmission efficiency,” he said.
The new South African variant dates back to Nelson Mandela Bay in the Eastern Cape, which was the first major urban area to be hit by the country’s second wave. South Africa has recorded some 950,000 cases of the virus since the pandemic began and some 25,000 deaths. Now the rainbow nation, weary and battered by draconian blockades, is seeing around 10,000 new cases a day.
It “strongly suggests” that the current wave of cases is being driven by the new variant, South African health minister Dr. Zweli Mkhize warned his citizens on Friday.
Dr. Mkhize criticized the young people attending the party and asked parents, caregivers and young people to “understand that now it is not just a matter of thinking about others, but that you yourself are now at the same risk of dying from of Covid-19 “.
Dr Mkhize said doctors had been providing “anecdotal evidence” that a “higher proportion of younger patients without comorbidities were critically ill.”
However, other experts say it is too early to know if the new strain was more deadly. Professor Karim said it was not yet clear if the new variant is causing more deaths.
“We don’t yet have enough data on this to determine whether the new strain could be more infectious to children and young adults,” Dr. John Nkengasong, director of the African Center for Disease Control and Prevention in Addis Ababa, told The Telegraph. .
Germany, Switzerland, Israel, Sudan, Mauritius, Turkey and El Salvador have banned incoming flights from South Africa.
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