News 12:00

BULLETIN 6 May 12 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The death toll rises as floods batter parts of South Africa
# A parliamentary committee calls for ongoing public engagement on the Hantavirus case in South Africa
# And the White House shooting accused is indicted on a fourth charge

# Flooding has left three people dead as heavy rains continue across South Africa. The National Disaster Management Centre says two bodies were recovered in the Northern Cape following the death of a 12-year-old in Taung, North West. An orange level eight warning remains in effect with joint operations centres active nationwide. Infrastructure damage has been reported in North West and the Northern Cape, while the Western Cape, especially the Garden Route, is closely monitored. The severe weather is expected to endure till tomorrow.

Meanwhile, the Western Cape Department of Mobility says Meiringspoort between Beaufort West and Oudtshoorn is currently closed due to flooding. The department’s Traffic Management chief director, Maxine Bezuidenhout, says motorists travelling between the Garden Route and the Karoo are advised to make use of an alternative route via the N9 from George through Uniondale, Willowmore and Aberdeen, connecting to the R61 towards Beaufort West:

# Parliament’s portfolio committee on Health has called for ongoing transparency and public engagement regarding the confirmed case of Hantavirus in South Africa. The Health Department has confirmed the case after the condition of a patient aboard the cruise ship MV Hondius necessitated his medical evacuation to a private health facility in Sandton for further medical management. Committee chairperson Faith Muthambi says they will closely monitor developments, including the progress of contact tracing, cross-border information sharing and the management of isolated cases.

Moving abroad:

# A US federal grand jury has added a fourth charge of assault with a deadly weapon against the accused in last month’s shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner, Cole Tomas Allen. US Attorney for the District of Columbia, Jeanine Pirro, says the 31-year-old has already been indicted on attempting to assassinate president Donald Trump, transportation of a firearm with intent to commit a felony, and discharge of a firearm:

# Rugby: Springbok and Bulls centre, Jan Serfontein, has decided to retire after a celebrated first-class career spanning 15 years. The 33-year-old played 35 tests for South Africa, along with participating in the 2015 World Cup in England. He spent five seasons with the Bulls before moving to French club Montpellier in 2017, where he made over 140 appearances across eight seasons and won the Top 14 title in 2022. Serfontein’s return to the Bulls last year was cut short by a significant knee injury.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-45-cents and the euro at 19-rand-31-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-37-cents and Bitcoin trades at 81-thousand-528-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-678-dollars-38-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 105-dollars-34-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….