Flare-up in Coronavirus Cases Sets Back Germany’s Reopening Efforts - The New York Times

BERLIN — A spike of more than 1,500 coronavirus infections within days has dealt a sudden blow to Germany’s efforts to reopen the country, calling into question the durability of what had been widely considered a success story in managing the contagion in Europe.

The new clusters have been concentrated in slaughterhouses and crowded, low-income apartment blocks, which have been quarantined, but they are generating increasing concern that the infections could break out and spread among the broader public.

This week, those concerns spurred the authorities in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia to impose lockdowns in two counties — the first since the country’s broader reopening in May — after hundreds of workers at the Tönnies meatpacking plant in Gütersloh county tested positive for the virus. Neighboring Warendorf county, where many plant workers live, was the second county locked down.

The outbreak at the Tönnies slaughterhouse now stands as one the most severe in Europe, outside of Sweden, according to figures gathered by the European Union. Since then, several hundred workers from two other slaughterhouses have been isolated as well.

Hundreds of police and health workers have fanned out over the region during the last week in an effort to find and test all of the Tönnies plant’s 7,000 workers — many of them seasonal laborers from Eastern Europe who were not properly registered with the authorities, raising fears that it might be difficult to contain the outbreaks with a targeted approach.

But the rise in cases is not limited to that area. Nationwide, health authorities registered 630 new infections on Thursday — hundreds more than the daily total just 10 days ago. The Robert Koch Institute, said the number of new cases increased by more than a quarter in much of the country over the past week, spreading rapidly in states that had experienced an outbreak.

“What we are seeing is that the virus is still there,” Germany’s health minister, Jens Spahn, told RTL television late Wednesday. “Where people make it easy for the virus, where they are careless and don’t respect social distancing and hygiene regulations, it is spreading again very quickly.”

The numbers of cases and the tenacity of the virus are now challenging an approach that had made Germany a model for European states looking to return to a semblance of normal life.

When the virus first began spreading rapidly in early March, Chancellor Angela Merkel overcame the obstacles of Germany’s decentralized federal system, forging consensus among the governors of the country’s 16 states to impose one of the strictest lockdowns in Europe.

But several weeks later, with numbers of new infections dropping and a populace itching to get out and enjoy the nice weather, the country’s governors grew restless too. Political pressures resumed to allow states to monitor their own populations and set their own guidelines on how much and how quickly to reopen.

With the virus seemingly in check, the chancellor agreed that the country could “afford a little audacity,” by lifting restrictions. But she warned states not to move too quickly and to remain cautious, and insisted that they reimpose restrictions if more than 50 cases cropped up per 100,000 residents.

Ms. Merkel was adamant that the reproduction rate of the virus, known as the R number, needed to remain below 1 — meaning that each infected person infected only one other — to ensure public safety. Last weekend the rate countrywide hit a high of more than 2, before rolling back to 1.11 this week.

That number will be closely watched in the coming days, even as states have moved to reopen cafes, restaurants, hotels and cultural institutions in time for Germans to take their summer holidays, with an eye to getting people back to work and increasing spending.

Social distancing and aggressive efforts at contact tracing — including the unveiling of a smartphone app last week that has been downloaded by 12 million people — have remained in place as part of efforts to ensure safety.

But the country’s opening has nonetheless been accompanied by a rise in cases — so far manageable but increasingly concerning. Overall, Germany has reported 192,079 cases of coronavirus so far, with 8,927 fatalities.

In Berlin last month. Since the country’s reopening, coronavirus cases have ticked up. Credit...Emile Ducke for The New York Times

“The numbers are going up in almost all German states,” Karl Lauterbach, a lawmaker for the Social Democrats who is also a doctor wrote on Twitter. “North Rhine-Westphalia, Berlin and Lower Saxony determine the R number, but unfortunately the trend is almost the same everywhere. It may be that we have already gone too far with the easing” of restrictions.

Last week the authorities ordered the quarantine of 700 residents of an apartment building in the central city of Göttingen, in the state of Lower Saxony, after more than 120 of them tested positive for the virus.

But they stopped short of ordering a regional lockdown, because the number of new cases remained below the 50 per 100,000 people. In a similar move, an apartment building in the Neukölln district of Berlin was also ordered quarantined.

On Tuesday, Armin Laschet, the governor of North Rhine-Westphalia state, announced the lockdown for Gütersloh and Warendorf counties.

By that time hundreds of workers at the slaughterhouse had tested positive, and the country’s reproduction number, or R, had jumped, peaking at 2.88 over the weekend.

The Coronavirus Outbreak

• Frequently Asked Questions and Advice

  Updated June 24, 2020

  • What’s the best material for a mask?

    Scientists around the country have tried to identify everyday materials that do a good job of filtering microscopic particles. In recent tests, HEPA furnace filters scored high, as did vacuum cleaner bags, fabric similar to flannel pajamas and those of 600-count pillowcases. Other materials tested included layered coffee filters and scarves and bandannas. These scored lower, but still captured a small percentage of particles.

  • Is it harder to exercise while wearing a mask?

    A commentary published this month on the website of the British Journal of Sports Medicine points out that covering your face during exercise “comes with issues of potential breathing restriction and discomfort” and requires “balancing benefits versus possible adverse events.” Masks do alter exercise, says Cedric X. Bryant, the president and chief science officer of the American Council on Exercise, a nonprofit organization that funds exercise research and certifies fitness professionals. “In my personal experience,” he says, “heart rates are higher at the same relative intensity when you wear a mask.” Some people also could experience lightheadedness during familiar workouts while masked, says Len Kravitz, a professor of exercise science at the University of New Mexico.

  • I’ve heard about a treatment called dexamethasone. Does it work?

    The steroid, dexamethasone, is the first treatment shown to reduce mortality in severely ill patients, according to scientists in Britain. The drug appears to reduce inflammation caused by the immune system, protecting the tissues. In the study, dexamethasone reduced deaths of patients on ventilators by one-third, and deaths of patients on oxygen by one-fifth.

  • What is pandemic paid leave?

    The coronavirus emergency relief package gives many American workers paid leave if they need to take time off because of the virus. It gives qualified workers two weeks of paid sick leave if they are ill, quarantined or seeking diagnosis or preventive care for coronavirus, or if they are caring for sick family members. It gives 12 weeks of paid leave to people caring for children whose schools are closed or whose child care provider is unavailable because of the coronavirus. It is the first time the United States has had widespread federally mandated paid leave, and includes people who don’t typically get such benefits, like part-time and gig economy workers. But the measure excludes at least half of private-sector workers, including those at the country’s largest employers, and gives small employers significant leeway to deny leave.

  • Does asymptomatic transmission of Covid-19 happen?

    So far, the evidence seems to show it does. A widely cited paper published in April suggests that people are most infectious about two days before the onset of coronavirus symptoms and estimated that 44 percent of new infections were a result of transmission from people who were not yet showing symptoms. Recently, a top expert at the World Health Organization stated that transmission of the coronavirus by people who did not have symptoms was “very rare,” but she later walked back that statement.

  • What’s the risk of catching coronavirus from a surface?

    Touching contaminated objects and then infecting ourselves with the germs is not typically how the virus spreads. But it can happen. A number of studies of flu, rhinovirus, coronavirus and other microbes have shown that respiratory illnesses, including the new coronavirus, can spread by touching contaminated surfaces, particularly in places like day care centers, offices and hospitals. But a long chain of events has to happen for the disease to spread that way. The best way to protect yourself from coronavirus — whether it’s surface transmission or close human contact — is still social distancing, washing your hands, not touching your face and wearing masks.

  • How does blood type influence coronavirus?

    A study by European scientists is the first to document a strong statistical link between genetic variations and Covid-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus. Having Type A blood was linked to a 50 percent increase in the likelihood that a patient would need to get oxygen or to go on a ventilator, according to the new study.

  • How many people have lost their jobs due to coronavirus in the U.S.?

    The unemployment rate fell to 13.3 percent in May, the Labor Department said on June 5, an unexpected improvement in the nation’s job market as hiring rebounded faster than economists expected. Economists had forecast the unemployment rate to increase to as much as 20 percent, after it hit 14.7 percent in April, which was the highest since the government began keeping official statistics after World War II. But the unemployment rate dipped instead, with employers adding 2.5 million jobs, after more than 20 million jobs were lost in April.

  • What are the symptoms of coronavirus?

    Common symptoms include fever, a dry cough, fatigue and difficulty breathing or shortness of breath. Some of these symptoms overlap with those of the flu, making detection difficult, but runny noses and stuffy sinuses are less common. The C.D.C. has also added chills, muscle pain, sore throat, headache and a new loss of the sense of taste or smell as symptoms to look out for. Most people fall ill five to seven days after exposure, but symptoms may appear in as few as two days or as many as 14 days.

  • How can I protect myself while flying?

    If air travel is unavoidable, there are some steps you can take to protect yourself. Most important: Wash your hands often, and stop touching your face. If possible, choose a window seat. A study from Emory University found that during flu season, the safest place to sit on a plane is by a window, as people sitting in window seats had less contact with potentially sick people. Disinfect hard surfaces. When you get to your seat and your hands are clean, use disinfecting wipes to clean the hard surfaces at your seat like the head and arm rest, the seatbelt buckle, the remote, screen, seat back pocket and the tray table. If the seat is hard and nonporous or leather or pleather, you can wipe that down, too. (Using wipes on upholstered seats could lead to a wet seat and spreading of germs rather than killing them.)

  • What should I do if I feel sick?

    If you’ve been exposed to the coronavirus or think you have, and have a fever or symptoms like a cough or difficulty breathing, call a doctor. They should give you advice on whether you should be tested, how to get tested, and how to seek medical treatment without potentially infecting or exposing others.

---

Last week authorities ordered residents of a high-rise apartment building, right, in Göttingen into quarantine after more than 120 of them tested positive for the virus.Credit...Swen Pförtner/picture alliance, via Getty Images

On Wednesday, outbreaks of the virus were reported in two other meatpacking plants, in Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia. Local authorities ordered several hundred workers into quarantine, amid debates over better working conditions for the meatpacking industry.

Many workers at the affected meatpacking plants come from Eastern Europe on seasonal contracts to help provide cheap pork chops, burgers and bratwursts to fill German barbecues throughout the summer months. They often live several to a room in poorly ventilated housing, which makes it difficult for them to maintain the necessary six-foot distancing rule.

In the slaughterhouse, they also stand side-by-side in cool temperatures that some experts have credited with accelerating the spread the virus.

Authorities last week ordered the workers at the Tönnies plant to remain isolated in their homes in the hope of slowing the spread of the disease.

Schools and day care centers were ordered shut on June 17, but only on Tuesday did Mr. Laschet reinstate a regional lockdown. That included a ban on public gatherings of more than two people who don’t live together. Recently reopened cafes, bars and sports facilities were closed again and widespread testing began among the 640,000 people in the affected counties.

Residents of the Warendorf district in Rhine-Westphalia lined up Thursday to be tested. The authorities locked down two counties in the state after outbreaks at slaughterhouses. Credit...Guido Kirchner/picture alliance, via Getty Images

In Gütersloh on Thursday, people arrived before dawn for a free coronavirus test, in the hope of salvaging their summer vacations booked in the mountains of southern Germany or along the northern seacoast. Summer break in North Rhine-Westphalia begins on Saturday, but with the lockdown now imposed on the two counties through the end of the month, several other German states have said residents of those counties are welcome only if theyprovide proof they are not infected.

Testing was voluntary, despite the large turnout, and health official said only one of the 2,000 people tested registered a positive result. Five new testing centers opened on Thursday, and officials said they hoped to be able to conduct 10,000 free tests a day.

The states of Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg. Lower Saxony and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania have all imposed restrictions on travelers from North Rhine-Westphalia, arguing they need to protect other visitors and the economies of their tourist destinations.

“Imagine that on an island in the North Sea there is a severe outbreak of coronavirus,” Bernd Althusmann, the economy minister for Lower Saxony, on Germany’s northern coast, told NDR Info radio. “Then the whole tourist industry would have to be shut down. To prevent that from happening requires precautionary measures.”

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