IOL reports that leading epidemiologist Professor Salim Abdool Karim has warned community members to remain vigilant regarding the Covid-19 pandemic as the next wave of infections is likely to set in around May, and be driven by a new variant, likely to be called Pi.
“That fifth wave will need to be driven by the new variant. That new variant is likely to be Pi. The Pi is the next letter in the Greek alphabet, and it comes after Omicron. We now have to be ready for Pi. We have to anticipate that we are likely to see Pi probably in early May and we now have to make sure we have the tools to deal with it when it comes along,” Karim told journalists. He added that indications were that Pi would not only spread faster, but would infect more people quicker. Last week, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced the end of the National State of Disaster. Abdool Karim welcomed the decision, and added that this was the “best time” to ease restrictions because of the current low infection rate. “This is the time to do many of the things you wanted to do. Come May, especially the middle of May, we are likely to see the likelihood of cases starting to rise,” he said.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Jonisayi Maromo at IOL
- Lees ook, Nuwe Omikron-variant in Botswana gevind, by Maroela Media
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