COVID: Germany shatters another record for case numbers
More than 65,000 new infections were registered across the country in the last 24 hours. Health officials warn the country is facing a “very bad Christmas.”
Germany broke its own record again on Thursday as it registered 65,000 new coronavirus infections in 24 hours.
This is the first time since the pandemic began that the number has been upward of 60,000 in a single day.
At the same time, the head of the country’s infectious disease agency the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), Lothar Wieler, warned that number could in fact be much higher.
What did the RKI head say about COVID in Germany?
Wieler said he believes there were “twice or three times as many” cases a day than were actually being reported.
“The under-reporting of the true numbers is increasing,” Wieler said during an online discussion with Michael Kretschmer, the state premier of Saxony, which is now the epicenter of the pandemic in Germany.
“We are in an emergency. Whoever refuses to see that is making a big mistake.”
Drawing a grim forecast for the coming days, Wieler urged political leaders to take quick action to curb new infections. “We will really have a very bad Christmas if we don’t take countermeasures now,” he warned.
He also expressed disappointment with the pace of COVID policy. “It’s simply no longer bearable that what I, and many other colleagues, have been saying for 21 months is perhaps still not being recognized.
“The health official called for contact restrictions, closure of clubs and bars, and the introduction of “2G” rules nationwide — referring to the shorthand in Germany for a rule that allows freedoms like access to restaurants and hotels only to those who are vaccinated or have recovered from COVID.
News credit : www.m.dw.com/en
