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Experts warn of third Covid-19 wave after Easter

by

Staff Reporter

HEALTH experts have warned of the possibility of an explosion in Covid-19 cases immediately after the Easter holidays if the public fail to comply with lockdown regulations.

Easter holidays are traditionally associated with a lot of movement and partying.

The Easter holiday starts with Good Friday tomorrow until Easter Monday, allowing citizens ample time to travel and meet friends and relatives.

Doctors said the third wave will be much stronger than the last two waves if people relax and fail to abide by Covid-19 prevention protocols.

They said there was complacency over the festive season which proved costly and past mistakes must not be repeated as the country may end up being saddled with a spike in cases or third wave.

During the festive season the country recorded a sharp increase in Covid-19 cases with 1 342 cases and 29 deaths being reported in a week, marking the highest number of infections and deaths to be ever recorded since the first case was recorded in March last year. The country recorded 34 deaths on January 5. The number of deaths reached 500 five days later and after two weeks they had doubled to 1 005.

The festive season alone recorded more cases compared to the period between March and December 20 last year.

The Chief Coordinator National Response to the Covid-19 Pandemic, Dr Agnes Mahomva said it is important for people to adhere to the stipulated health regulations to avoid a surge in cases during the Easter holiday.

“Just like what we did when we came to the end of the first wave, people got complacent then we got a spike. We are saying as we go to the Easter holiday let us stick to the lockdown measures to avoid a spike. We don’t urge people to travel unnecessarily, particularly during this period and we are strengthening up our systems because what we know is that complacency is likely to trigger cases to go up,” she said.

Another top health expert, Dr Rita Dlodlo urged people to celebrate the Easter holiday at their homes as families to avoid contracting the coronavirus and spreading it.

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