Vice President Constantino Chiwenga
HARARE,– The Zimbabwean government on Saturday restored a curfew and banned all gatherings, except for funerals, for 30 days as the country battles to contain a surge in COVID-19 infections.
As was the case during the initial lockdown restrictions in March 2020, only essential services such as hospitals, pharmacies and supermarkets will remain open.
However, these services will now operate between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m.
The country has of late witnessed a high number of local infections amid fears that the second wave of the pandemic will be more deadly than the first.
As of Saturday, Zimbabwe recorded 14,491 cases and 377 deaths with about 1,400 infections reported this week.
AMID soaring deaths and numbers of people infected by the lethal coronavirus, concerned health experts warned anew yesterday that the country was facing a Covid-19 storm which could have devastating consequences for the nation and its people.
In addition, the experts also told the Daily News that authorities now needed to move with renewed vigour to revise and monitor the current coronavirus restrictions, to avert a looming catastrophe among many complacent communities.
This comes as the government has deferred the opening of schools this year, following rising Covid-19 deaths and infections in the country.
It also comes amid a worrying slip of discipline among many Zimbabwean communities, with a New Year’s eve gathering in Harare’s high-density suburb of Mbare, for example, highlighting the growing lack of vigilance that locals now have regarding the deadly respiratory disease.