Coronavirus Cases, Death Toll: Parts of Germany Postpone Reopening After Rise In Infections

Parts of Germany are putting off reopening businesses as coronavirus infections rise. As of 9:40 p.m. ET, there are 170,588 cases in Germany, with the country’s death toll standing at 7,510.

The district of Coesfeld, located in Germany’s most-populated state, North Rhine-Westphalia, is postponing the reopening process after more than 180 employees tested positive Saturday for the virus at the Westfleisch meat-packing plant. The outbreak has forced the Westfleisch plant to shut down.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Wednesday outlined a plan to ease restrictions, allowing shops to reopen with additional hygiene requirements. Social distancing requirements of about 5 feet will continue until June 5, while Germany’s football season will restart sometime in the second half of May.

Germany’s 16 federal states have been given the responsibility to determine when to open up restaurants, bars, gyms, amusement parks and other public venues. The country has to adhere to an “emergency brake” mechanism where certain towns or districts will shut down again if new cases exceed 50 a day per 100,000 inhabitants.

Germany has managed to have fewer deaths than other European hotspots, due to an oversupply of hospital beds and widespread testing. Last month, Germany took in more than 200 coronavirus patients from other European Union member states in an act of solidarity.

The coronavirus originated at an animal and seafood market in the Chinese city of Wuhan, and has since spread across the world. There are 3,965,863 cases of the virus worldwide, with the global death toll at 275,527.