Winde calls for Western Cape to move to Level 3 lockdown, says province is prepared for peak
“Our people in the Western Cape are frightened. They are especially, especially concerned. What is happening in the Western Cape is not at all good.”
She asked for an indication of what the national government was doing to support the Western Cape.
“Is there some intervention coming from national to assist our staff on the frontline?” Gillion asked.
The department’s chief operating officer Gail Andrews said they had had a number of meetings with the Western Cape’s Department of Health to determine an approach to assist them. They had done the same with other provinces. She said they had data on when to expect peaks in each province, and plan accordingly.
“We continue to try and support them,” she said.
She said Health Minister Zweli Mkhize was “very keen” to send a team to assist the Western Cape, together with the “Cuban brigade”.
On the Western Cape, Phaahla said: “Indeed, we’re all concerned and we have been discussing with the minister a focused intervention.
“We see the problem of the Western Cape as a national problem.”
He said the Western Cape had an “early flare-up” and it is an indication that a “similar explosion” can happen elsewhere.
While the committees met with the department, Western Cape Premier Alan Winde announced during a digital press conference that there had been 39 new Covid-19-related deaths recorded on Tuesday.
By 13:00 on Wednesday, the Western Cape had 11 072 cases and 211 deaths, while 100 721 tests had been done.
