South Africa registers record of daily chaos of Covid-19 with 26,976 infections in 24 hours

South Africa on Wednesday registered its highest number of daily cases of Covid-19 since the start of the pandemic, just a few weeks after detecting the new Omicron variant.

The country recorded 26,976 Covid-19 infections in just 24 hours. The previous daily record was 26,485 infections and was reached on July 3 during the third wave by the Delta variant.

The Óómicron variant was first detected in South Africa in November, sparking global panic over fears that it is more contagious than other variants.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa tested positive for Covid-19 this Sunday despite being fully vaccinated, his cabinet announced on Monday.

Although the Omicron variant has been detected in countries around the world, it is still unknown if it causes more serious symptoms and if it can evade the protection offered by vaccines.

During the latest record in July, South Africa recorded 108 deaths from the virus. On Wednesday, 54 people died from Covid-19.

So far, the available data suggests that the vaccine protects against Omicron.

Last week, South Africa approved the third dose for all citizens over the age of 18.

So far, more than 17 million people are vaccinated in South Africa, representing a third of the country’s population.