Staff Reporter
The Free State health department has rolled out a door-to-door COVID-19 screening exercise, as the province reached 100 confirmed cases of the coronavirus disease.
Provincial health spokesperson Mondli Mvambi said the department was intensifying its mass screening exercise in an effort to curb the spread of the novel virus that causes the deadly respiratory illness.
“This ongoing work of mass screening through door to door is aimed at intensifying efforts to flatten the curve and curb COVID-19 transmissions,” he said.
Mvambi said in Mangaung the mass screening exercise would continue at Twin City Mall and Turflaagte behind the police station.
Other screening sites within the metro had also been set up at Northridge Mall and Fleurdal Shopping Centre in Bloemfontein as well as at Section C2 in Botshabelo, while health workers were scheduled to go from door to door in Wepener.
In Thabo Mofutsanyana, the door-to-door screening exercise was to be conducted at Tshiame B, Intabazwe Ward 4 and Ward 5 as well as at Makholokoeng.
In Fezile Dabi, screening was scheduled for the Mooidraai informal settlement in Sasolburg, the Stokkiesdraai mining area between Orkney and Viljoenskroon and at the Villiers truck stop.
“The department is screening any person in the community and a special appeal is made to all members of the community that had contact with COVID-19-positive people or those who have been exposed to COVID-19 environments to please avail themselves for screening to determine their eligibility to test for COVID-19,” Mvambi said.
“The department is appealing to all households to welcome our screening teams and cooperate with them for the sake of the health of the nation.”
Meanwhile, the national total of COVID-19 cases had climbed to 2 783 as of Friday evening.
The total number of deaths stood at 50, according to Health Minister Zweli Mkhize.
The new total of confirmed cases is a jump of 178 from Thursday’s total of 2 605 — which was in itself a jump of 99 from Wednesday.
As of Friday, 100 827 tests had been done, 5 767 more tests than announced the day before.
The provinces with the most cases were Gauteng with 1 018, the Western Cape with 717 and KwaZulu-Natal with 591.
The Eastern Cape has 246 confirmed cases, the Free State 100, Limpopo 26, North West 24, Mpumalanga 23 and the Northern Cape 16.
Twenty-two cases had not yet been allocated.
In terms of deaths, KZN still has the most, with 20, followed by the Western Cape with 15, Gauteng with six, the Eastern Cape and Free State with four each and Limpopo with just a single case.