Five more Covid deaths in SA as student absences linked to the virus hit 4000

Children returning to school is sparking a rise in Covid cases across SA, with 75 per cent of the new cases in those aged 40 and under. Two people in their 40s are among five new deaths.

The number of public school students reporting as absent for Covid-related reasons – including isolating as a close contact – has risen to over 4000.

Education Department data shows the percentage of students absent for reasons linked to Covid on Wednesday was 2.3 per cent of the 174,000 students in government schools, up from 2 per cent reported last Friday.

A total of 406 schools reported such absentees.

There were also 278 teachers and 176 SSOs from 376 public schools reported as infected, isolating or caring for another person.

The figures do not denote that the infection was acquired at school and do not include absences at Catholic or independent schools.

In the broader community, five more people have passed away while infected with Covid – a man and woman both in their 40s, a woman in her 60s, a man in his 70s and a man in his 90s – with 2307 active cases reported in South Australia on Thursday.

There are now 18,150 active cases, bringing the total of recorded infections in SA to 154,481, including 186 deaths.

Deputy chief public health officer Dr Emily Kirkpatrick said the rise in Covid infections was “not surprising”

“No doubt a factor in that has been the return to schools and the increased cases we have seen is in children, particularly children under 10 years of age,” she said.

“If we look over all of the numbers, it’s been around 75 per cent of our current cases have been in individuals 40 and under.”

She said there was nothing alarming about the deaths of two people under the age of 40.

“But of course, it’s incredibly sad when we do have to report those numbers.”

There are 104 people with Covid in hospital, including nine people in intensive care, and one person requiring a ventilator.

Of those in hospital, 58 people are fully vaccinated, 22 are either unvaccinated or partially vaccinated, and 24 have an unknown vaccination status.

The vaccination rate is 94.7 per cent with one shot, 92 per cent with two, and 68.4 per cent have received a booster.