London, May 10, 2020 (AltAfrica)-40 coronavirus patients in South Africa are currently on live support using ventilators as as the country added 663 new infections taking the total covid-19 infections to 9,420.

In a news conference in the Western Cape, which has almost 50% of the total cases health minister, Zweli Mkhize also said 45 patients are in”high care” while another 77 are in intensive care

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Death toll in the country rose to 186, as eight more people lost their lives over the past 24 hours.

“We express our deepest condolences to the families of the deceased and thank the health care workers who looked after these patients,” Mkhize said.

The minister also said 3 953 South Africans have now recovered from the Covid-19 virus while as many as 324,079 tests have been conducted since the beginning of the outbreak in the country

This means that 800 more people have recovered from the virus since the last recoveries update on Thursday night. 

Mkhize did not provide a province by province breakdown of the latest recoveries on Saturday when he announced more than 500 new infections and 8 more coronavirus related deaths in the country. 

On average, it takes 14 days for an infected patient to rid themselves of the virus. 

“We urge that health workers be given the flu vaccine. We want them to be well trained and well protected, as the frontline workers,” he said on Twitter Saturday after more than 500 health workers recently tested positive for COVID-19 in the country.

Meanwhile, the Public Servants Association, PSA, representing more than 240 000 public servants, had noted with serious concern the address delivered by Public Service and Administration Minister Senzo Mchunu on Friday about the lack of readiness of the public service to return to work.

In a statement on Saturday, PSA said was disappointing that the minister had, only a week after level four regulations cut in, announced that plans would be developed for the return of public servants, while in fact public servants had been performing duties since the inception of the lockdown. 

“The minister was surely aware that a vast number of public servants have already, since 4 May 2020, been recalled, reporting for duty [at] various departments and agencies, though lacking PPE [personal protection equipment], screening of employees, and deep cleaning of offices,” the PSA said. 

“This acknowledgement is late, and preparations should have been made before employees were recalled. The PSA is aware that many public servants were already recalled to the workplace and in some instances sent back, thereby causing unnecessary and further exposure to the virus. The PSA will not allow its members to be exposed to dangerous working conditions unnecessarily.”

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