South Africa reports record number of daily virus deaths

South Africa on Wednesday announced a record 24-hour increase of 572 coronavirus deaths, bringing its total number of fatalities to 5,940.

The country is the worst-affected in Africa and among the top five in the world in terms of confirmed cases, with 394,948 infections reported to date.

“Regrettably we report 572 new COVID-19 related deaths. This brings the cumulative number of deaths to 5,940,” Health Minister Zweli Mkhize said in a daily statement.

Almost half the total number of deaths have been reported in the Western Cape province, while the majority of positive cases are in Gauteng — South Africa’s financial hub and epicentre of the outbreak.

The mortality rate has remained low, however, at around 1.5 percent on Wednesday.

Almost 60 percent of the country’s COVID-19 patients have recovered from the virus. (AFP)

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