Supplied
Nelson Mandela Bay acting Executive Mayor, Thsonono Buyeye has commended the work done by nine environmental health practitioners who have been responsible for contact tracing of people who tested positive for COVID-19.
Buyeye said the Metro relied on them since March to reach the vast majority of residents in the city who came into contact with positive patients.
This, despite being chased out of some people's homes due to the stigma around the virus.
In a statement the Municipality said as of Thursday, the City had recorded 20 975 COVID-19 positive cases with NMBM contact tracers reaching a total of 13 007 contacts since starting work in March.
“Although our City was named as a hotspot we managed to turn the tide with the help of these contact tracers who had to be moved from their offices to the Nelson Mandela Bay stadium isolation site as their work exposed them directly to the virus,” Buyeye said.
Meanwhile, Disaster Management chairperson, Shane Brown said the latest figures reveal that the Metro has had 818 deaths so far and over 19 000 recoveries.
He said while this was good news, citizens should continue to adhere to all the regulations to avoid a second wave of infections.
Contact Tracing team leader, Buyiswa Deliwe said: “This experience has taught us that proper use of the Personal Protective Equipment has major benefits.
