IT has been nearly seven months since Mzansi started its hard lockdown to fight the coronavirus pandemic.
Life changed in South Africa from 5 March when the very first case of Covid-19 was reported in KZN.
This was after a patient who travelled to Italy as part of a group of 10 people tested positive for the virus.
On March 23, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that the hard lockdown would start on 26 March at level 5.
On 27 March, the first Covid-19 death was reported in South Africa.
Booze, skyf,t ravel, events, restaurants, gatherings and many other activities came to a complete stop across the country.
The wearing of masks became compulsory everywhere and curfews were implemented.
Soldiers were sent across the country and travel needed special permits.
Mzansi people were stuck in their homes and working from home began.
Social media filled up with posts of amagwinya, banana loaves and all kinds of comfort meals being made to keep busy and entertained.
Then the scary reality of the deadly virus started revealing itself as hospitals started struggling to cope with the number of rising cases and deaths.
Questions were asked of the country’s private hospitals, as the state bulked up its own hospitals.
When Ramaphosa announced a R500 billion stimulus package towards the pandemic, the word PPE (personal protective equipment) became one of the most commonly used.
The economy bled jobs because of lockdown and the number of cases escalated.
The Western Cape became the epicentre of the virus, recording the most deaths and cases.
Social media was flooded with heart-breaking stories of devastated children relating horrific stories of their parents’ deaths by Covid-19, as government scrambled to control the spread of the virus.
The reopening of booze and skyf sales under level 2 in August was welcomed with great relief by boozers, smokers and businesses.
As of today, the latest number released by Health Minister Dr Zweli Mkhize is that 692 471 cases have been recorded with 17 780 deaths.
Gauteng continues to be in the lead with 223 011 cases, and the country has 623 765 recoveries.
