The Covid-19 storm that shattered SA and sparked its strength

TODAY marks five years since South Africa entered one of the strictest Covid-19 lockdowns in the world.

- VUYILE MADWANTSI

At the time, our streets fell silent, schools shut their doors, and the buzz of everyday life was replaced with an eerie stillness. It feels like both yesterday and a lifetime ago.

For some, the memories of those turbulent days are a faded blur. For others, they remain raw and vivid, like an open wound that refuses to heal. It was a time that tested our resilience, pushing us to the brink as individuals, families, and a nation.

It was also a time that revealed the fragility of life, the strength of community, and the power of adaptation.

We were irrevocably changed, but we endured.

From the heartbreak of saying goodbye to loved ones to the silver linings of rediscovering our priorities, the pandemic left no life untouched. For better or worse, it shaped who we are today.

The pandemic didn’t just knock on our doors; it barged in uninvited, leaving devastation in its wake. Every South African household, directly or indirectly, felt the sting of loss.

By late 2020, funerals became a grim routine many of them virtual, as we said goodbye to loved ones from behind screens.

But no Zoom call can prepare you for the moment you see someone you love hooked up to a ventilator.

I'll never forget the day my mother was admitted to the ICU during the peak of the pandemic. I thought I was prepared and told myself I could handle it. But nothing could have prepared me for the helplessness of watching her fight for each breath.