On
Friday, 12 June, South Africa marked 100 days since we documented our first
case of Covid-19. Since that fateful day, our lives have changed irrevocably.
By Saturday, 1 423 people in
South Africa had lost their lives. The country had recorded 65 736 infections
with 36 850 people having recovered and 1 087 887 tests administered.
South Africa went into lockdown
early, which curbed the initial rate of infections and saved thousands of
lives.
Every night, around 22:00, the
Department of Health releases that day’s numbers: infections, deaths,
recoveries.
Through this barrage of daily
numbers, graphs and trends, it is easy to lose sight of the real victims of
Covid-19: those who have lost their lives.
As more and more people succumb
to the deadly virus, we need to pause and remember that the victims, our fellow
countrymen and women, were not just numbers, but fathers, mothers, sons and
daughters who all played an important role in their communities.
Like Tracy Harman, wife of
54-year-old Anton who died of Covid-19 in May, said: “My husband was a
human being. Until people realise that, deaths will keep happening.”
Today we launch Covid-19 | We Remember. It is our attempt to
give the numbers a human face and pay tribute to those whose lives the virus
has claimed.
We hope to honour their stories
while we are reminded of the reasons for the sacrifices the lockdown has forced
all of us to make.
If you have lost a loved one to
the virus and would like to pay tribute to them, send us their name, age, where
they’re from and a picture, along with a short obituary to [email protected]
and help us honour their memory.
