Elundini Local Municipality Mayor Cllr Nonkongozelo Lengs allayed fears of Coved 19 suspected infections in the area after reports that a German resident visited one of the rural areas last week. Mayor talked to councillors in a council meeting held in this Municipality in Maclear on Thursday. Mayor said there must be no fear because the person who visited to attend a funeral from Germany assured them that she has tested negative Coronavirus before coming to the area. Reports of panic in the area were detailed by the ward councillor of ward 6, Cllr S. Mdoda, and published in a whatsapp group page of the councillors. In his statement Cllr Mdoda said there is a suspected Covid 19 person who has recently travelled from Germany to attend a funeral in Elundini ward 6, Lower Esinxako Village. According to Cllr Mdoda the suspected person travelled from Germany and landed in Cape Town where she fetched the body of the deceased, and arrived at home in Lower Esinxako Village on the 16 March 2020 for the preparation of the Funeral. “It is reported that concerns were raised by the family members but assured them that she tested for Covid 19 and the results came negative, they therefore proceeded with the funeral. The funeral took place on the 22nd of March 2020, and she departed immediately after the funeral.” “Today elderly people were fetching their medication at Mqokolweni Clinic and the staff had an opportunity to present the measures that are being enforced, in that process they established that these elderly people were in contact with someone who came from Germany which is a hotspot area, and this has started a panic amongst the community and the people who had attended the funeral are now worried”. “It is in this background that we feel that there is a need to check whether the area is not infected with the virus and enforce self quarantine measures, Cllr Mdoda concluded. On the other hand Umzimvubu Local Municipality is trying to demystify the same, as reports of Covid 19 confirmed case went viral on Social Media yesterday. The reports are saying that this confirmed case is of a person who traveled from Gauteng to Mt Frere after the Lock Down announced by the president. The Municipality responded to Mandy Mafungwashe KaLuthuli who wrote on facebook asking if this is true. The municipality responded that no cases have been registered or confirmed. The Informer further interviewed a close relative of the German visitor of Elundini, who is also a ward committee in the ward, N Sodinga who said “We should be aware by now that our sister is positive. When she was here with us she told us that she has tested negative so there is nothing new so far. Cllr Lengs said her Municipality is assisting the department of health to roll out awareness to the people of Elundini.
