This archive report was first published on 16 July 2020.
As Covid-19 cases near 250,000, South Africa has become the epicenter of the pandemic in Africa, surpassing Egypt's 80,000 infections and 3,617 deaths.
On July 10, the South African government announced 13,734 new cases overnight, prompting the country to fully enter the runaway phase of the pandemic.
Three out of nine provincial premiers have contracted Covid-19, and large swaths of land in Gauteng province have been identified and cleared to accommodate possible thousands of graves.
"We had to come and deal with the unfortunate and uncomfortable subject of death and also to see our preparedness as a province to see how we will be able to cater in the event that many people pass on," said Dr Bandile Masuku, the Gauteng provincial government Member of the Executive Council (MEC) for Health, last week.
One cemetery in Honingnestkrans, north of Pretoria, has a capacity of 24,000 graves, but more space has been reserved to expand it to accommodate 36,000 graves.
"We are working around those figures and it's something we are prepared for. We are not here to cause panic, but we need to ensure it's also to ascertain from our side that the logistics are in place," added Dr Masuku.
Images of excavators digging up the graves have set off alarm bells across the country, prompting authorities to respond to rumours that the government intended to dig up one million graves.
In a statement, the Gauteng health department clarified that the province has not dug over a million graves, but rather the collective capacity municipalities can handle.
Health Minister Zweli Mkhize has called for unity in the fight against Covid-19, saying, "The storm that we have consistently warned South Africans about is now arriving. As a nation we have every reason to be united in this fight against Covid-19. We dare not be divided."
