A family from Manenberg on the Cape Flats is mourning the loss of a young, married couple who died hours apart from each other on Thursday, August 5, leaving behind their six-month-old baby girl.
According to News 24, Daniel (40) and Rowena Josephs (37) recently contracted Covid-19 and were isolating. In an exclusive interview with News 24, Rowena’s 68-year-old mother Geraldine Arends indicated that her daughter first contracted the virus in 2020, and recovered from it but was not lucky this time around as she and her husband did not make it.
Arends adds that the two were due to come out of isolation next week, and had indicated to her that they will get vaccinated after they weren’t keen on getting it the first time around.
“I kept telling them they must go to get the vaccine. I wish they had listened to me instead of taking my nagging and pleading so lighthearted,” Arends was quoted as saying.
Meanwhile, the little girl will remain in her grandmother’s care. The Western Cape’s health department also indicated on Thursday, August 12, that twenty-five per cent of the eligible population in the province have already received their COVID-19 vaccine doses however, vaccine hesitancy is the biggest challenge in the province.
Premier Alan Winde says during the third wave, those aged 50 years and older accounted for 68% of admissions and 87% of deaths respectively.
“These residents remain one of the most vulnerable groups to suffer severe illness and death and will continue to be those who require the most support from the healthcare system,” Winde said.
Also read:
Post mortem reports confirm AWS SA’s worst fear regarding Manenberg cat killer
Picture: Unsplash