Covid-19 variant responsible for second wave may have emerged from Eastern Cape By Staff Reporter Share Cape Town – The coronavirus variant that became dominant in parts of South Africa towards the end of 2020 may have emerged from the coast of the Eastern Cape after the first wave. This according to a study by an international group of scientists recently published in the prestigious journal, Nature. The rapid displacement of other Sars-CoV-2 lineages in multiple regions indicates that this variant has an advantage over these other strains, possibly owing to increased transmissibility and/or its ability to avoid the immune system.