Ignoring lockdown rules caused Covid outbreak at Burgersdorp school

Ignoring lockdown regulations is the main culprit in Covid-19 outbreaks at schools in Burgersdorp and Middelburg, said state officials.

At Ethembeni Senior Secondary School in Burgersdorp, 102 pupils have tested positive for the coronavirus.

Speaking at a joint media briefing with the provincial education, health and public works departments on Tuesday, health MEC Sindiswa Gomba said 23 pupils from Ekuphumleni High School, 10 from Middelande High School, two from Nonyaniso Primary School and 25 Middelburg residents had also tested positive for the virus.

“All those who tested positive have been isolated in local isolation sites as they are asymptomatic. Only one case was hospitalised,” Gomba said.

Education MEC Fundile Gade said his department, together with health and public works, was able to manage the effects of Covid-19 in the area.

Gade said psychological services had been provided for teachers and pupils at Ethembeni Senior Secondary School.

The tracing process showed that boys formed the majority of infections at the school.

“The disciplinary committee's findings is that there's been a lack of observation of the lockdown because of [sports] tournaments.

“It was predominantly boys who tested positive, which means they've been playing sports. The social behaviour within the communities themselves has come under scrutiny,” Gade said.

The move to level 1 of the national lockdown “excited some people”, he added. 

“Even the tavern in the area is allegedly not observing the lockdown regulations, which then poses a problem for the departments of education and health,” Gade said.

He said the three departments were especially concerned about three matric pupils infected at Ethembeni as the matrics were writing their trial exams.

He said an alternative assessment would be available for the pupils and that the provincial department had applied to the national department to exempt the pupils.

Under alert level 1, Gade said 98% of teachers and 84.5% of pupils in the province had returned to school.

However, vandalism was a problem at Eastern Cape schools, he added.

Gade said 576 school had been vandalised since lockdown began in April. Half of those schools were being repaired.

Public works MEC Babalo Madikizela said R578.9m had been approved for Eastern Cape-based contractors to refurbish 67 health facilities in the province.

He said work at the 100-bed Dora Nginza Hospital in Nelson Mandela Bay had been completed at a cost of more than R33m.  

Madikizela said the department had rolled out isolation sites in the Joe Gqabi district as a result of the large outbreak.