A 36-year-old male who travelled to multiple countries is now the Western Cape’s first confirmed case of the coronavirus. He recently visited Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Turkey.

The man returned to South Africa on March 9 and is one of six new confirmed cases of the virus in South Africa. The Health Department has not yet released the exact location of the Western Cape’s first confirmed case.

“The Minister of Health wishes to inform the public that 6 new cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed. This takes the total number of coronavirus positive cases in South Africa to 13,” said Minister of Health Dr Zweli Mkhize in a statement.

Four new cases have been confirmed in Gauteng. These include:

– A 33-year-old female who travelled to Italy and retuned on March 1, 2020

– A couple consisting of a 34-year-old male and a 33-year-old female who travelled to Germany, returning to South Africa on March 9

– A 57-year-old male has also tested positive for the virus after travelling to Austria and Italy and returning to South Africa on March 9

In KwaZulu-Natal, one new case has been confirmed. A 40-year-old male returned from Portugal on March 7 and tested positive for the virus.

To date, 645 coronavirus tests have been conducted.

“All the patients have now been advised. Those who are symptomatic have started receiving treatment. Some of these patients are already in hospital while some, specifically those who are asymptomatic are in self-quarantine. Contact tracing has already started for all these cases,” said Mkhize.

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