Scientists and officials are reportedly bracing for an explosion in the number of Covid-19 coronavirus infection in Ghana as Ghana’s numbers picks up momentum at 214 infections and five deaths.
Virologist with the Kumasi Centre for Collaborative Research (KCCR), Dr. Michael Owusu recently confirmed this expected explosion, while research by the Oxford University had made a similar projection.
“The virus has a reproductive number of 2.5 to 3 so it grows exponentially. And the exponential growth depends on the multiple number of contracts we have. So what I expect is that if nothing changes and things move on as it is, there is still multiple number of contacts happening then you expect a big jump and it will happen in the next one to two weeks,” Dr. Owusu explained in an interview monitored by Whatsup News.
“The death rate that we have set at 2.2 per cent, I think it is too early. When the hospitals are overwhelmed, when we have sections full of patients, when you think that things are already exhausted that’s when you can actually measure the prevalence of death,” he explained.
However, the Oxford University using the GLEAMviz computational tool estimated that a total of 1.3 million people are likely to get infected in Ghana.
According to the team, as of March 28, 2020, when Ghana officially confirmed about 138 infections, some 2740 were walking around untested and were potentially spreading the virus across the country.
Globally, Covid-19 infections have grossed more than 1.3 million people and has killed over 73,000 people. The USA is the hardest-hit country with over 350,000 infections and more than 10,000 deaths.
The pandemic was reportedly spread in December 2019 from Wuhan in China.