The new coronavirus pandemic hit Cape Town much earlier than previously assumed and this helps to explain why South Africa’s main tourist hub now accounts for more than half of all infections and the most deaths, a senior health official said on Thursday.

The rapid spread of COVID-19 in the port city of around 4.5 million people has perplexed health authorities and emerged as a political hot potato in a province where the official opposition Democratic Alliance has governed since 2009, rather than the ruling African National Congress (ANC).

“We believe that there (was) earlier seeding than what we thought initially in terms of community transmission,” said Doctor Keith Cloete, head of the Western Cape health department.

Data released on Thursday showed the Western Cape region had 47 522 confirmed COVID-19 cases, out of a national total of 83 890.

The province also has the most deaths from the highly contagious respiratory disease.