Berlin - Germany confirmed its first two
deaths from the coronavirus on Monday and the overall number of
new infections rose by more than 200, in the latest signs that
the epidemic is spreading rapidly in Europe's largest economy.
Germany's number of confirmed infections stood at 1,112, far
short of Italy's tally of over 7,300, but that included a large
cluster of 322 in one municipality in western Germany. A
60-year-old German national has died from the disease in Egypt.
Officials in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia
said an 89-year-old woman had died in the town of Essen and that
a 78-year-old man with pre-existing health conditions had died
in the badly affected region of Heinsberg.
The patient in Essen had tested positive with coronavirus on
March 3 after being hospitalised in an already critical
condition, local authorities said.
The woman's state of health deteriorated further in the
following days and she then died of pneumonia caused by her
infection with the coronavirus, they said.
The patient in the district of Heinsberg was hospitalised on
Friday with pre-existing heart problems and diabetes, Stephan
Pusch, administrative head of the district, said. The man then
died of cardiac arrest on Monday.
"This shows again that older people and people with
pre-existing health problems are particularly at risk," Pusch
said.
German Health Minister Jens Spahn has said organisers of
events with more than 1,000 participants should call them off
and said that there would be discussions over coming days over
how to mitigate the economic consequences of that decision.
Chancellor Angela Merkel's governing coalition agreed to
make it easier for companies to claim subsidies to support
workers on reduced working hours until the end of the year.
That would make it possible for firms to cut the hours and
wages they offered their workers with the government making up
nearly two-thirds of the shortfall, sparing workers from layoffs
which might otherwise become necessary.
Several German companies have been hit by the epidemic,
including carmaker Daimler and airline group Lufthansa, which
has canceled half of its flights over coming months.
Merkel said on Monday she expected Finance Minister Olaf
Scholz and Economy Minister Peter Altmaier to present further
measures this week to help companies bridge liquidity problems
due to the coronavirus outbreak.
European Union leaders will also discuss the coronavirus and
its impact on the economy at a summit on March 26, she added.