News 12:00

BULLETIN 7 May 12 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The WHO is contact-tracing passengers on a flight from St Helena to Johannesburg over hantavirus concerns
# Three police constables die in a shooting incident in Kariega
# And at least 70 civilians were killed and over 500 injured across Ukraine since the start of May

# The World Health Organisation and the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention are monitoring 82 passengers and six crew members who travelled on an Airlink flight from the Atlantic island of St. Helena to Johannesburg on April 25th. This comes after a 69-year-old Dutch woman, who was a passenger on the flight, died shortly after arrival after contracting the hantavirus. The woman was part of a larger cluster originating from the MV Hondius cruise ship. The WHO says they are tracing the flight passengers out of an abundance of caution.

# Eastern Cape police have confirmed the deaths of three members in a shooting incident in Kariega this morning. Spokesperson Nobuntu Gantana says they received a complaint of shots fired and found three constables with multiple gunshot wounds. She adds one of them, who was the former boyfriend of a female constable, forced entry into the residence where she and another member were present:

# The Southern Africa Agri Initiative, Saai, warns Section Ten of the foot and mouth disease vaccination scheme could worsen challenges in managing the outbreak. The farmers’ organisation argues the scheme gives too much power to the director of Animal Health despite past failures in handling outbreaks. Spokesperson Francois Rossouw cautions  livestock owners may face significant financial pressure as they are required to cover vaccination and veterinary costs under the programme:

Moving abroad:

# The United Nations’ Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine says at least 70 civilians have been killed and more than 500 were injured in the country since the start of this month. Russia continues to launch aerial bombs across the country, including Zaporizhzhia, Kramatorsk and western regions. The mission’s head, Danielle Bell, says many of the attacks occurred in densely populated urban areas, contributing to the high civilian toll. She adds under international humanitarian law, any combatant is obliged to take all feasible measures to minimise civilian casualties.

# Soccer: Defending champions Mamelodi Sundowns missed the chance to extend their lead at the top of the Premiership table, after being held to a 1-1 draw by Kaizer Chiefs at Loftus Versfeld. Amakhosi took the lead through Flavio Silva, and Bryan Leon equalised in the 55th minute. The Brazilians are now just three points clear of Orlando Pirates, who have a game in hand and a superior goal difference. Sundowns coach Miguel Cardoso expressed frustration over the officiating:

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-29-cents and the euro at 19-rand-17-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-18-cents and Bitcoin trades at 81-thousand-385-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-741-dollars-65-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 98-dollars-50-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….