JOHANNESBURG – Sixty-six people at a single hospital in South Africa have tested positive for the coronavirus in the past few days, the health minister said Tuesday, as anxiety rose among health workers over the shortage of protective gear.
At least 48 of the people who tested positive at St. Augustine’s Hospital in the city of Durban are staff, Zweli Mkhize said.
He said authorities are looking into closing parts of the facility. The minister also sought to ease the fears of health workers after one union went to court last week pressing the government for more protective gear.
South Africa’s supplies should last up to eight weeks, he said, adding that no one will be forced to work where they feel unprotected.