Daily Covid-19 update: 10 939 new cases identified in SA and latest global developments

As of Saturday, 19 December, the cumulative number of detected Covid-19 cases is 912 477 with 10 939 new cases identified, Health Minister Zweli Mkhize has confirmed.

254 more Covid-19 related deaths were reported, with 85 from Eastern Cape, 12 from Free State, 18 from Gauteng, 61 from Kwa-Zulu Natal (KZN), 4 from Limpopo and 74 from Western Cape.

This brings the total number of Covid-19 related deaths to 24 539.

READ MORE: No reason to panic about virus variant – but Mkhize has stern message for the youth

“We convey our condolences to the loved ones of the departed and thank the health workers that treated the deceased,” the minister added.

Recoveries now stand at 787 782 ,while a total of 6 100 373 tests have been completed with 48 387 new tests conducted since the last report.

Source: Department of Health

Here are the latest developments in the coronavirus crisis:

Italy tightens virus restrictions

Italy, one of the countries worst hit by the novel coronavirus, will be classified a “red” zone over the Christmas and New Year periods, meaning that between December 21 and January 6, people will only be allowed to leave their homes once per day to visit friends or relatives, and travel between regions will be banned.

And starting from December 24, bars and restaurants will also be closed.

“Our experts fear that the infection curve will increase during the Christmas period,” says Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte.

However, the rules will be relaxed on December 28, 29 and 30, as well as on January 4, when shops will be able to remain open until 9:00 pm and people will be allowed to move about freely.

Swiss approve Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine

Swiss regulators give the green light to the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, with immunisation set to start within days as the country battles rising coronavirus cases and deaths.

It is the first Covid-19 vaccine approved in the wealthy Alpine nation, but others are being assessed.

“After a meticulous review of the available information, Swissmedic concluded that the Covid-19 vaccine from Pfizer-BioNTech is safe and that its benefit outweighs the risks,” the regulatory authority says.

Health Minister Alain Berset says vaccinating will start “in the coming days.”

“Those who are particularly vulnerable will have priority,” he says in a video tweet, namely the elderly and those with pre-existing conditions.

US approves Moderna vaccine

The United States authorises Moderna’s Covid-19 vaccine for emergency use, as the country grapples with a surge that is killing over 2,500 people a day.

The US is the first nation to approve the two-dose regimen, which is now the second vaccine to be deployed in a Western country after one developed by Pfizer and BioNTech.

Turkish virus patients die in hospital fire

At least nine coronavirus patients die in a fire at a hospital in southeastern Turkey, the health ministry says.

The blaze in an intensive care ward of the hospital in Gaziantep broke out when a tank on an artificial respirator exploded.

All the victims were patients who had been hospitalised with the coronavirus. Other patients affected by the fire were transferred to other hospitals.

Turkey has recorded more than 1.9 million cases of Covid-19 and more than 17,600 deaths since the pandemic began a year ago.

Sydney to Hobart yacht race cancelled

Australia’s gruelling Sydney to Hobart yacht race is called off for the first time in its 76-year history because of an escalating coronavirus outbreak, organisers say.

The often brutal 628-nautical mile (1,163-kilometre) bluewater classic was due to start on Boxing Day, but with parts of Sydney locked down after a new cluster of Covid-19 cases, it is cancelled.

“We are bitterly disappointed to cancel the race this year especially considering the plans and preparations we had put in place to have a Covid safe race,” says Cruising Yacht Club of Australia (CYCA) commodore Noel Cornish.

1.67 million dead

At least 1,675,362 people have died since the outbreak emerged in China last December, according to a tally from official sources compiled by AFP.

The United States is the worst-affected country with 313,660 deaths, followed by Brazil with 185,650 deaths, India with 145,136, Mexico with 117,249 and Italy with 67,894.

READ NEXT: The new virus variant and how we’ll deal with it – Mkhize explains

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