Corona: Numbers in big cities are increasing
Ana Goldscheider studied journalism and corporate communication in Hamburg and is now completing additional training as an editor. In a medical editorial office, she writes texts for print magazines and, among other things.
More about the experts All content is checked by medical journalists.The number of corona infections is increasing almost everywhere in Germany, especially in large cities. Chancellor Merkel therefore spoke to several mayors on Friday. Warn experts.
The number of new corona infections is increasing every day - especially in large cities and metropolitan areas. Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) has now met with those responsible for the eleven largest German cities. The mayors of Berlin, Hamburg, Bremen, Munich, Frankfurt am Main, Cologne, Düsseldorf, Dortmund, Essen, Leipzig and Stuttgart took part in the video conference.
Here are some important questions and answers:
What is the corona situation like in the largest German cities?
The number of infections is increasing in many German cities. Most recently, Berlin, Bremen and Frankfurt had registered more than 50 new infections per 100,000 inhabitants in the last seven days. In Frankfurt this incidence value was 55.9 on Friday. Just beyond the city limits, in the neighboring city of Offenbach, the threshold value, which is important for the development of the pandemic, was even 65.8.
The metropolis of Munich, too, had recently reported a higher number, while Cologne and Essen were recently just below the threshold. The development in the metropolitan areas shows "whether we can keep the pandemic in Germany under control or whether control is slipping away from us," said Merkel.
Why the limit of 50 corona infections?
The federal states have agreed on this warning value in order to be able to react to the pandemic. The so-called seven-day incidence - i.e. the number of new infections per 100,000 inhabitants in seven days - is intended to make the development of the pandemic regionally comparable. The value based on a week is less subject to fluctuations.
Another critical value is 35 new infections in seven days. From a value of over 35, it becomes difficult for the authorities to track the chains of infection, said Munich's Mayor Dieter Reiter (SPD). In addition, there is a sharp increase "in infections in people where they and we do not know where this happened," said Offenbach Mayor Felix Schwenke.
How do cities react to increasing numbers of infections?
Merkel and the city leaders decided that when the number rises to 50 infections at the latest, the cities should introduce extensive restrictions. This includes, for example, the expansion of the mandatory face mask to include public spaces if the necessary distance cannot be maintained there.
There are also curfew and alcohol restrictions for restaurants as well as further restrictions on the number of participants at events and private celebrations. The big cities should also ensure that their regulatory agencies can actually monitor compliance with the rules.
Is there support for the cities in the fight against Corona?
The Bundeswehr and the Robert Koch Institute are to send experts to Corona hotspots in the future if requested. According to the agreement reached between the Chancellor and the mayors on October 9th, this applies if more than 35 new infections per 100,000 inhabitants were registered in seven days.
Why are cities in particular worrying?
In the meantime, it is no longer mainly those who return to travel that are responsible for the rising corona numbers, but the health authorities are observing many infections within Germany. Even if there were repeated increases in the number of infections through infections at large family or company celebrations, in large companies or in shared accommodation, the increase in the number of infections is no longer due to such individual events.
In Berlin, for example, in its management report on Thursday, the Robert Koch Institute attributed the increasing numbers to young, international travelers and partiers, "who get infected on the go or at parties and then spread these infections in their households and families". The multitude of unregulated leisure activities that could be dangerous is specific to the cities.
The workplaces that are concentrated in the big cities or the many shopping opportunities, on the other hand, are usually heavily regulated and therefore not a risk factor if the rules are adhered to. The urban narrowness still plays a certain role. People there cannot avoid each other the way they can in rural areas, for example when they have to use buses, subways or buses.
"As a rule, there is no specific, additional risk for the individual in the cities if the known rules are adhered to," emphasized the Frankfurt health department head Stefan Majer. In the meantime, every federal state has introduced its own rules, e.g. for public events, private celebrations, as well as schools and daycare centers.
How do experts currently see the corona situation?
The President of the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), Lothar Wieler, is concerned about the increasing numbers. "It is possible that the virus is spreading uncontrollably," he said. Because then, according to the experts, there is a risk of new bottlenecks in the hospitals - if the number of seriously ill corona patients increases with the rising number of corona. Many illnesses are currently still mild - but that may change if more and more older people fall ill with Covid-19.
Merkel warned that developments in the metropolitan areas show "whether we can keep the pandemic in Germany under control or whether control is slipping away from us". The Chancellor admitted: "I am very well aware that the restrictions that are necessary now hurt." But it is important to prevent public life, schools and the economy from having to be cut back as much as in the spring. "The number of infections is increasing. But we are anything but powerless against it," stressed Merkel. (ag / dpa)
