150 confirmed coronavirus cases in South Africa

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in South Africa has jumped to 150, president Cyril Ramaphosa said on Thursday (19 March).

The president made the new number known in a briefing following a meeting with religious leaders.

This new figure is up 30% from the previous overnight tally of 116 infected, with 34 new cases.

“The level of infection has now risen to 150, and that for us is concerning, because that already tells us that if you extrapolate that, it could start to rise in greater number.

“This reinforces our message about social distancing, that we should as much as possible reduce gatherings of people and not go beyond 100,” he said.

This is where the cases were discovered:

Gauteng Province: 15

• A 41-year-old female who travelled to the Democratic Republic of Congo
• A 43-year-old female who travelled to the Democratic Republic of Congo
• A 37-year-old female with no international travel history
• A 54-year-old female who travelled to the United Kingdom
• A 58-year-old male who travelled to the United Kingdom
• A 38-year-old male who travelled to France
• A 70-year-old female who travelled to the United States of America
• A 30-year-old male who travelled to Spain
• A 45-year-old male who travelled to the Democratic Republic of Congo
• An 85-year-old male who travelled to Switzerland
• A 64-year-old male who travelled to Vietnam and Thailand
• A 41-year-old male who travelled to the Netherlands
• A 23-year-old male with pending travel history
• A 5-year-old female with pending travel history
• A 44-year-old male with pending travel history

KwaZulu-Natal Province: 3

• A 71-year-old female who travelled to the United Kingdom
• A 26-year-old male who travelled to Mexico and the United States of America
• A 29-year-old female with pending travel history

Mpumalanga Province: 1

• A 56-year-old female who travelled to France

Western Cape Province: 15

• A 53-year-old female who travelled to the United Kingdom
• A 30-year-old female who travelled to the Netherlands and Qatar
• A 45-year-old male who travelled to Mexico
• A 70-year-old female who travelled to the United States of America
• A 25-year-old female who travelled to the United Kingdom
• A 37-year-old female who travelled to the United Kingdom
• A 43-year-old female who travelled to the United States of America
• A 31-year-old male who travelled to Spain and the Netherlands
• A 53-year-old female who travelled to Switzerland, Austria, Czech Republic and Germany
• A 22-year-old female who travelled to the United Kingdom
• A 63-year-old male who travelled to Switzerland, Czech Republic and Germany
• A 22-year-old male who travelled to Spain and the Netherlands
• A 32-year-old male who travelled to the United States of America
• A 37-year-old male with pending travel history
• A 34-year-old male with pending travel history

Social distancing is a social concept, not a hard-line regulation with enforced rules. It’s a broad measure to slow down the spread of infections, which will help officials curb transmission. This leaves it open to interpretation for individuals to assess the risks associated with any activity they choose to do.

The Department of Health has provided its own guidelines for what to avoid, or be cautious around where possible – but none of these recommendations are currently enforced.

It’s up to individuals and communities to opt-in to the concepts to best serve their families and wider communities.

By 14h00 on Thursday, the number of confirmed cases of coronavirus around the world totalled over 225,400, with 9,277 deaths. There are over 130,300 active cases, with 85,800 recoveries.

As many as 166 countries, areas or territories have confirmed cases.

Read: Massive border fence between South Africa and Zimbabwe to combat coronavirus spread