CAPE TOWN, May 8 (Xinhua) -- South Africa on Friday reported 663 new cases of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, the highest number since March 5 when the country reported its first case, raising the total number of cases in the country to 8,895.
Meanwhile, 17 more COVID-19 related deaths were reported, bringing the death toll to 178, Health Minister Zweli Mkhize said in his daily update.
As of Thursday, the country had 435 COVID-19 patients in hospital, with 77 placed in ICU, said the minister.
"Our hospitalization rate remains at 5 percent of all COVID-19 diagnosed patients," he said.
A total of 307,752 tests have been conducted to date, with 15,599 tests done in the past 24 hours, Mkhize said.
Western Cape Province remains the epicenter of the epidemic with 4,497 cases and 88 deaths, followed by Gauteng with 1,851 cases and 18 deaths, and KwaZulu-Natal with 1,253 cases and 42 deaths.
Also on Friday, Western Cape Governor Alan Winde urged President Cyril Ramaphosa to urgently intervene to address the worsening testing backlogs in the province.
"The long delays result in waits of up to seven days for test results, putting extreme stress and pressure on those awaiting their test results," Winde said. Enditem
