We’ve got the latest news stories and headlines in South Africa on Friday, 12 May 2023.
The rand broke through the R19/$ level on Thursday for the first time since April 2020.
South Africa is currently experiencing a mumps outbreak, with an increase in the number of queries about clusters noted since February.
Although the total hours for load shedding in 2023 have not surpassed those of 2022, Eskom has confirmed that the electricity demand not met has exceeded that of 2023.
In other news, a primary school pupil allegedly had a “cardiac event” and had to have his stomach pumped due to drinking a Prime Energy drink.
The weather services warned that widespread rain, SNOW, and cold are expected in South Africa this week. Here is the latest.
TODAY’S LATEST NEWS IN SOUTH AFRICA, Friday 12 May
BREAKING: Rand breaches R19/$ mark on Thursday
The rand broke through the R19/$ level on Thursday for the first time since April 2020.
According to a report by News24 Business, the local currency last traded at these levels during the height of pandemic-related market panic in April 2020 and may now be on a march to break through its worst level ever (R19.26/$).
The report furthermore stated that the rand had lost 17% against the dollar over the last year.
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Mumps outbreak in SA: What you need to know about the viral infection
South Africa is currently in the midst of a mumps outbreak, according to the National Institute for Communicable Disease (NICD).
Mumps is a viral infection caused by the rubavirus, which leads to painful swelling of the parotid or salivary glands or both.
It generally infects children aged between 5 and 9 years old. However, younger and older children and adults can become infected with mumps.
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Primary school pupil suffers ‘cardiac episode’ after drinking Prime
A pupil in the United Kingdom allegedly suffered a “cardiac episode’” after drinking a Prime Energy drink.
According to the Daily Mail, the primary school wrote to parents warning them of the incident.
The school reportedly said the pupil had to have their stomach pumped after consuming the energy drink.
“This morning, a parent reported that their child had a cardiac episode over the weekend after drinking a Prime Energy drink.
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SA has had more load shedding so far than the whole year of 2022
Although the total hours for load shedding in 2023 have not surpassed those of 2022, Eskom has confirmed that the demand for electricity not met has exceeded that of 2023.
Eskom is currently implementing Stage 6 rolling blackouts until further notice. Based on the hours some have been without electricity in a day, there have been claims that the power utility is implementing a stage which is higher than 6.
A graph from the app Load Shedding Notifier, which showed that the amount of load shedding, measured in gigawatt hours, would surpass that of 2022 sometime this week, has been circulating on Twitter.
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Brrrr! SNOWY and RAINY weekend expected in South Africa
Brrrr! A SNOWY and RAINY weekend is expected in South Africa this weekend.
According to the SA Weather Service (SAWS) a spell of very cold and rainy weather is expected to affect the Western, Northern, and Eastern Cape later this week, extending into the weekend.
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LATEST NEWS: WEATHER FORECAST, Friday 12 May
Take a look at weather forecasts for all nine provinces here.
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HOROSCOPE TODAY
Free daily horoscope, celeb gossip, and lucky numbers for Friday, 12 May.
