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The "Katzen" bar in Hamburg's Schanzenviertel
Photo: xim.gs / imago images / xim.gs
After positive corona tests by employees of a bar in Hamburg's Schanzenviertel, the authorities assume that around 600 people frequented there and, in the worst case, could have been infected.
500 people from almost all Hamburg districts who visited the "Katzen" bar on September 5th, 8th or 9th have already been reached, said a spokesman for the Hamburg health authority.
Many are already in quarantine.
So far, six corona tests have been positive, "including several bar employees".
We are still looking for around 100 bar visitors.
According to the information, many had left incorrect contact details and did not enter their names and telephone numbers in the contact lists, but instead immortalized themselves there as "Lucky Luke" or "Darth Vader".
That poses a problem in tracking possible chains of infection in the "cat" visitors. "Such behavior is stupid," said Helfrich, since in the event of an incident one cannot be informed oneself and thus also endangers others.
This was also emphasized by the district office manager of Altona, Stefanie von Berg, and tweeted: "" Darth Vader "with a wrong phone number cannot be contacted. #Corona Please contact the Altona health department!"
Last weekend, the health department became aware of the first cases from the "cat".
The operator has voluntarily closed the bar in the popular scene and party district, said Helfrich.
Apparently he had anticipated an impending closure by the health department.
It doesn’t seem quite unusual for guests to enter the contact lists of bars and restaurants with incorrect data.
"It is well known that many guests do not register with their real names," says a waitress from a neighboring bar on the shoulder blade.
"The authorities should have checked that."
This cannot be expected of the waitresses and bar operators.
The woman does not want to express herself further.
"It's also about solidarity here in the ski jump."
In Hamburg, restaurateurs have to pay a fine if they do not ensure that their guests enter themselves in the Corona contact lists.
However, they are not responsible for the truthfulness of the information.
It is also difficult to prosecute bar or restaurant visitors if they give false information, says Helfrich.
Everyone who is classified as a so-called "contact person one" must now be in a two-week quarantine.
Since infected waitresses were working in the bar, these were all guests who entered the interior of the "cat" on the days mentioned after 7:00 pm.
"I assume that the majority of them are classified as contact persons and have to go into quarantine," said Helfrich.
A corona test is only ordered by the health department when symptoms occur.
The quarantine could not be terminated prematurely by a negative test - as is the case with travelers returning from risk areas.
The number of registered new corona infections in Hamburg meanwhile rose by 46 cases on Thursday.
The outbreak in the "cat" is not yet reflected in the numbers, said Helfrich.
An overview of how many of the guests in question were actually infected in the bar will probably only be available in the coming week.
Icon: The mirror
pgo / dpa