London, May 26, 2020 (AltAfrica)-South Africa on Monday recorded 52 deaths linked to Covid-19, the highest number of fatalities the country has experienced in a single day since the coronavirus was first detected here in March.

“Regrettably, we report 52 more Covid-19 related deaths. This brings the total national deaths to 481. We wish to express our condolences to the loved ones of the deceased and thank the health care workers who treated these patients,” Health Minister Dr Zweli Mkhize, said. 

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The number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in South Africa has increased to 23 615. This is 1 032 more cases than previously reported. 

The total number of recoveries stands at 11 917.

A total of 596 777 tests have been conducted to date, with 12 992 tests done in last past 24-hour testing cycle.

On Sunday, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that while the country will be downgrading to level 3, the government has identified several hot-spot areas where they will continue to monitor Covid-19 cases. 

“Even as we move to alert level 3, it is important that we should be aware that there are a few parts of the country where the disease is concentrated and where infections continue to rise. 

“We will have a differentiated approach to deal with those areas that have far higher levels of infection and transmission. The list of hot-spot areas will be reviewed every two weeks depending on the progression of the virus

Source