Booze sales restricted, curfew tightened and size of gatherings reduced: SA moved to lockdown level 3

President Cyril Ramaphosa on Tuesday moved the country to lockdown level 3 amid a surge of Covid-19 cases, particularly in Gauteng.

During a national address, Ramaphosa said a third wave of infections “is upon us”.

He said that, two weeks ago, the daily average of new infections was 3,700 but this has increased to 7,500 new daily infections, on average. At the same time, he said, hospital admissions over the last 14 days are “59% higher than the preceding 14 days”. At the same time, the president said, the average number of deaths each day had increased by 48%.

“The massive surge in new infections means that we must once again tighten restrictions. Cabinet has therefore decided to move the country to alert level 3. This will take effect later this evening once the regulations have been gazetted,” Ramaphosa said.

The new regulations mean that, among other things, alcohol sales have been restricted, the national curfew tightened, and the numbers of people allowed to attend gatherings reduced.

This is a developing story.