South Africa on Wednesday recorded its single biggest 24-hour jump in Covid-19 cases, as the tally surged to 5,350.
This was an increase of 354 cases from Tuesday.
There were also an additional 10 deaths recorded, taking the total to 103.
The Eastern Cape now has 630 confirmed cases.
“As at today [Wednesday], the total number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in South Africa is 5,350 – an increase of 354 cases,” said health minister Dr Zweli Mkhize.
“This is the highest number of cases in a 24-hour cycle recorded to date and represents a 73% increase relative to the day before.
“While this is well noted, the interpretation of the rate of spread is more reasonably assessed by studying trends over time.”
He said that there had been 197,127 tests conducted to date, with 11,630 done in the last 24 hours.
“This is the highest number of tests done in a 24-hour period, representing a 66% increase relative to the previous day’s tally,” said Mkhize.
The provincial breakdown is as follows:
Eastern Cape 630
Free State 113
Gauteng 1408
KwaZulu-Natal 956
Limpopo 31
Mpumalanga 31
North West 29
Northern Cape 17
Western Cape 2,135
This is a developing story.
By Matthew Savides