German lockdown after new outbreak

MORE than 640,000 people are back under lockdown in Germany this weekend as Europe faces its first major test in containing fresh outbreaks after lockdowns were lifted.

Leaders and scientists are watching north-western Germany closely as the state battles to contain the virus and provide a template for suppressing inevitable clusters that are to become the new normal for countries that reopen.

The outbreak among staff at a pig slaughterhouse jolted the continent. But cautious optimism is already beginning to emerge that Germany may have contained the worst of it — and found a new way to manage the disease. For while more than 1,550 employees at the warehouse in Rheda-Wiedenbruck tested positive, so far the evidence is that the outbreak has spread remarkably little beyond the abattoir.

The German R number, which briefly jumped to 2.88 last Sunday, has since dropped back to 0.57, a significant relief.

Germany is not alone in battling a second spike. The WHO listed 11 countries — including Sweden and Ukraine — where the threat could lead to healthcare systems being overwhelmed.

In Lisbon, the lockdown has been reimposed, with residents in 19 of its 24 districts only allowed to leave home to work or shop for essentials. In the rest of the city, gatherings are limited to 10 people.

Croatia also announced new restrictions, imposing a 14-day quarantine on arrivals from Serbia, Kosovo, North Macedonia and Bosnia. The decision comes after an increase in cases, some linked to a tennis tournament organised by Novak Djokovic, the world number one, who himself tested positive afterwards.