South Africa sees 'huge discrepancy' in virus, total deaths

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — The South African Medical Research Council is reporting a “huge discrepancy” between the country’s confirmed COVID-19 deaths and the number of excess deaths from natural causes, while Africa’s top health official says the virus is spreading there “like wildfire.”

The new report, which came out late Wednesday, shows more than 17,000 excess deaths in South Africa from May 6 to July 14 as compared to data from the past two years, while confirmed COVID-19 deaths are 5,940.

“In the past weeks, the numbers have shown a relentless increase — by the second week of July, there were 59% more deaths from natural causes than would have been expected based on historical data,” the report says.

The council’s president, Glenda Gray, said in a statement the excess deaths could be attributed to COVID-19 as well as to other widespread diseases such as HIV and tuberculosis as many health resources are redirected toward the pandemic.

Meanwhile, some South Africans are thought to be avoiding health facilities as fears of the new virus spread and public hospitals are overwhelmed.

“In all countries with COVID-19, we are seeing this,” Health Minister Zweli Mkhize said of the report.

South Africa is now one of the world's top five hot spots. It makes up more than half the confirmed cases on the African continent with 394,948, with the toll expected to surpass 400,000 by the end of Thursday.

Africa’s 54 countries now have more than 750,000 cases.

South Africa is “very concerning,” the director of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, John Nkengasong, told reporters Thursday.

And now other African countries are becoming a problem, notably Kenya, where Nkengasong said cases have “taken off very, very quickly.” East...