London, Dec. 12, 2020 (AltAfrica)-South Africa has recorded 8 319 New coronavirus (COVID-19) cases on Friday bringing the total number of cases to 845 083 as the second wave of the pandemic spread across the country

The country also recorded 205 new COVID-19 related fatalities, pushing the death toll to 22 952

Eastern Cape 96, Free State 10, Gauteng 20, KwaZulu-Natal 20, Limpopo 2, Northern Cape 15 and Western Cape 42, with the province passing the 5 000 mark, joiningGauteng and the Eastern Cape. This brings the total number of deaths to 22 952.

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A cumulative total of 5 779 544 tests have been completed, with 44 074 new tests conducted since the last report. The number of recoveries now stand at 758 373.

Health Minister Zweli Mkhize expressed deep concern over an exponential rise after 6 709 new cases were identified on Wednesday and 8 166 on Thursday.

“Regrettably, 205 more COVID-19 related deaths have been reported: Eastern Cape 96, Free State 10, Gauteng 20, KwaZulu-Natal 20, Limpopo 2, Northern Cape 15 and Western Cape 42. This brings the total to 22 952” reads

Recoveries now stand at 758 373.

Meanwhile, one of South Africa’s leading scientists in the fight against COVID-19, Professor Salim Abdool Karim says the virus is expected to spread as companies close for the holidays. Abdool Karim says that even the provinces that have lower cases will start to show increases.

“We are now in a situation where we have rapidly growing cases in all four big provinces. We are now in the midst of the second wave and with the travel that we are expecting on the 16th of December when the factories close, industries close all of these provinces that are on the lower end they will all start showing increases. The worrying part is that our second wave looks like in the Eastern Cape, it looks like it’s going to be worse than the first wave.”

Abdool Karim has warned that the second surge of the pandemic might be worse than the first wave. KwaZulu-Natal has been named as one of four provinces where new infections are rising rapidly.

In a special briefing earlier this week, Mkhize, said the country now meets the resurgence criteria formulated by scientists and modelling team