Corona virus: Relaxations were also introduced in North Rhine-Westphalia after the federal-state conference. But the consequences are already following - due to the number of infections.
- As part of the federal-state switch , new easing may be announced on Wednesday.
- A concrete and detailed plan for schools and daycare centers is also to be presented.
- Here you will find the basic facts about the corona virus * and the corona news from Germany. You can also find current case numbers in Germany here as a map *. The following recommendations for Corona protective measures * are currently available.
Update 10:51 p.m .: The Münster Administrative Court has rejected an urgent request from Westfleisch against the temporary closure of their Corona outbreak in Coesfeld. The district had closed the slaughtering and cutting plant from Saturday to May 18.
This decision, which is based on the Infection Protection Act, was "in all likelihood lawful according to the file," the court said on Sunday. In the meantime, more than 200 employees of the company have tested positive for the corona virus. It can be assumed that there are still an undetermined number of suspected corona cases or infections. An appeal against the decision could be lodged with the Higher Administrative Court in North Rhine-Westphalia within two weeks.
The Office for Occupational Safety and Health found during a check that there are problems both in the area of the dismantling tape and in the changing rooms to maintain the minimum distance of 1.50 meters, it said. The mouth-nose protection masks would not be worn correctly on the cutting tape. The company was not able to identify main areas of infection.
Corona in NRW: number of infected people at slaughterhouse in Coesfeld increases to 205
Update, May 10, 12.12 p.m .: After the Corona outbreak in a meat factory in Coesfeld , the number of workers who tested positive for the virus rose to 205 by Sunday noon . According to the district, almost half of the results from around 950 corona tests were available.
Again, teams from the health department are on site to test the workers of the Westfleisch company concerned in their scattered accommodations in the district of Coesfeld and to inform them about the quarantine, a spokesman said. They support interpreters. The workers would be "closely monitored". The company concerned has a total of around 1200 employees.
According to Westfleisch, the workers are mostly housed in apartments with three, four or five people. Many workers in the meat industry come from Eastern Europe.
The Greens branch in Dülmen in the Coesfeld district accused the administration of reacting too late to the Corona outbreak. It was already known at the beginning of last week that a hotspot of the pandemic had formed in the meat factory. However, the operation continued until Friday.
On Saturday, thousands of people took to the streets in Berlin, Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria against the Corona measures. Many disregarded the basic protective measures, such as the necessary distance. Not only because of this, there are pictures that "make the mind doubt", commented the Munich Mercury *.
Update, May 10, 10:55 a.m .: After the corona outbreak in a meat factory in Coesfeld, the number of new infections in the district is still significantly above the agreed upper limit. According to an overview by the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) on Sunday, the value was around 85 new infections per 100,000 inhabitants and week (as of May 10, 00:00).
As a consequence, the Coesfeld district, in coordination with the state government of North Rhine-Westphalia, has already postponed a large part of the loosening of the corona requirements that was actually planned nationwide from Monday. By Saturday evening, 930 of 1200 employees of the affected meat company had been tested. The number of positive corona cases found rose to more than 190.
Corona in NRW: Hundreds at anti-measures demo in Cologne - right-wing extremists attack press team
News from May 9th:
Update, 9:58 p.m .: A press team was attacked during another Corona demo in Dortmund . The man, who according to the police is a right-wing extremist, hit the journalists' camera and slightly injured a person. The 23-year-old was placed in police custody.
The city of Dortmund had banned the demonstration against corona restrictions on Saturday afternoon (May 9) for reasons of infection protection law. However, according to the police, up to 150 people showed up, including a group of police-known right-wing extremists . The man who attacked the press team had previously insulted a media representative.
The medium for which the journalists were traveling is currently still unclear. Recently, representatives of ARD and ZDF were attacked in Berlin on the sidelines of corona protests within a few days.
Corona in NRW: Hundreds at anti-measures demo in Cologne - Chief of police appalled: "Absolutely no understanding"
Update, 9.45 p.m .: Several hundred people demonstrated unannounced against the corona protective measures on Saturday afternoon (May 9) in Cologne - without maintaining the minimum distance and without a mouth guard. “A large number of the demonstrators have repeatedly asked bystanders to remove their mouthguards and to enter the shops without a mask . We have absolutely no understanding for this, ”said Police President Uwe Jacob. “It is incomprehensible to me how one can demand something like this in these times. Apparently, these people still didn't understand that this is not just about their health , but also about the lives of other people, ”Jacob continued.
The police recorded the personal details of the alleged leader of the demonstration and other companions on the platform. It is now being investigated because of the violation of the Corona Protection Ordinance , the Assembly Act and the Infection Protection Act .
Even children were among the participants. "I can understand that the current exceptional situation is not easy for all Cologne residents to cope with," said the police chief. “But deliberately endangering his health , that of his children and the health of uninvolved people doesn't make it any better. Anyone who puts the latest easing at risk so unreasonably favors a renewed and rapid increase in infections . "
Corona in NRW: Further cases of infection at Westfleisch - 191 employees affected
Update, 21:02: There are now 191 employees of the company Westfleisch in Coesfeld in North Rhine-Westphalia positive for the coronavirus been tested. That first reported the picture . The meat factory was temporarily closed on Friday.
Coronavirus in North Rhine-Westphalia: 183 infections detected in slaughterhouse employees
Update, 5.41 p.m .: In the North Rhine-Westphalian district of Coesfeld , the health authorities examined other employees of the slaughterhouse affected by the corona pandemic . By Saturday (May 9), 183 coronavirus infections had been detected among the employees . A total of almost 920 of the roughly 1200 employees were cut back. The laboratory evaluations were still ongoing.
Several teams from the district health office were also on Saturday to test the employees of the slaughtering and cutting plant in their accommodations. The district had sent the order for temporary closure to the affected company at night . Until May 17, 2020, slaughter, cutting, packaging, loading and shipping at the Coesfeld site are now completely prohibited.
On Friday (May 8), North Rhine-Westphalia was the first federal state to put the emergency mechanism into effect in the event of a frequent occurrence of coronavirus infections . The occasion was the occurrence of numerous illnesses among employees of a slaughterhouse in the Coesfeld district ( see below ).
Corona in NRW: Touching farewell to a healed Italian - Laschet with problems with mouth protection
Update, 13:58 : Touching scenes in North Rhine-Westphalia: In the morning, 65-year-old Claudio Facoetti was discharged from the hospital. He was one of the patients from Bergamo who had been brought to NRW due to the congestion of hospitals in the region.
Coronavirus - Bochum: Laschet says goodbye to an Italian patient from Bergamo
© dpa / Bernd Thissen
When he left, he received a T-shirt with the signatures of the hospital staff. Prime Minister Armin Laschet (CDU) , who also attended the farewell, meanwhile struggled with the seat of his mouth guard under his glasses.
Prime Minister Armin Laschet (CDU) is wearing glasses that are foggy
This should make him feel like many other German citizens who have to get used to the fact that glasses can fog up with breath.
Coronavirus in NRW: easing in the Coesfeld district postponed
Update from May 9, 11:36: The district of Coesfeld in North Rhine-Westphalia has been a Corona stronghold since Friday. The critical limit of 50 newly infected people per 100,000 inhabitants within a week has been significantly exceeded. Prime Minister Armin Laschet (CDU) is now reacting . "If you open, you have to act consistently where there is danger," said Laschet on Saturday on the sidelines of saying goodbye to a recovered Italian Covid-19 patient from a clinic in Bochum. "The protection of the population is paramount."
In close coordination with the state government, the district decided to partially postpone the possible corona loosening in the Coesfeld district by a week . After infections in meat shops increased, the approximately 20,000 employees of all slaughterhouses in the state are also to be tested for the corona virus in NRW.
In the past few weeks, Prime Minister Laschet had been instrumental in driving the easing debate on coronavirus measures.
Corona study from Hamburg: A forensic doctor thinks fear is superfluous - "This is not a killer virus," he says.
Corona in NRW: Laschet surprises and hands out against Seehofer - district breaks upper limit
Update of May 9, 7:32 a.m .: North Rhine-Westphalia's Prime Minister Armin Laschet (CDU) increases the pressure on Federal Interior Minister Horst Seehofer (CSU) in the debate about the corona-related border closures. "We urgently need an opening of the border with France," said the CDU vice of the Stuttgarter Zeitung and the Stuttgarter Nachrichten (Saturday editions). "The lockdown ends there on May 11th - that would be a good time to signal to our neighbors that we are striving for a common European response to the pandemic."
Laschet , who had held open borders with the governments of the Netherlands and Belgium at the beginning of the Corona crisis, told the two newspapers that the federal government had to "speak to Austria in this sense". The past few weeks have been “too national and too little European”.
Corona in NRW: Laschet surprises with demands
Laschet disagreed with Interior Minister Seehofer , who had recently described the border controls as "part of our previous success in containing the infection process". "Our problem in Germany was the return travel of our own nationals from ski resorts like Ischgl - the idea that customs controls or borders stop the virus was wrong from the start," emphasized the deputy CDU chief, who is applying for the chairmanship of his party. His state had worked cross-border in the fight against the pandemic and exchanged all data on the infection events every day: "It was more effective."
Meanwhile, the German government apparently has doubts about Donald Trump's thesis that the corona virus was grown in a laboratory in Wuhan, China.
Corona in NRW: New district breaks through critical brand - Now drastic consequences follow
Update from May 8, 7:02 p.m .: In the relaxation phase of the corona requirements , the authorities in North Rhine-Westphalia have to pull the emergency brake because of the high number of infections. In circles in North Rhine-Westphalia, the critical value of 50 new infections per 100,000 inhabitants was exceeded within seven days. The government in Düsseldorf now took action and temporarily closed a slaughterhouse in Coesfeld , in which a particularly large number of employees had been infected.
According to data from the Robert Koch Institute , the number in the Coesfeld district was 52.7. The virus had recently spread mainly in the Westfleisch slaughterhouse in Coesfeld. According to the district, 129 infected people were recorded there. All 1200 employees are now to be tested. NRW Minister of Health Karl-Josef Laumann (CDU) initially closed the business.
Several easing of the protective measures planned for the coming Monday (May 11) will be postponed by a week to May 18. This affects above all the relaxation of contact restrictions , the opening of restaurants and amusement parks . Shops with more than 800 square meters of retail space are also unlikely to open next Monday.
Corona: New district breaks through critical brand - more herds of infection in slaughterhouses
Update 12:12: In the now as a hotspot applicable district Coesfeld is also a coronavirus outbreak in a meat-processing company made manifest known. Now the employees of all slaughterhouses in North Rhine-Westphalia are to be tested on Sars-CoV-2. Government spokesman Christian Wiermer announced on Friday.
Foci of infection in slaughterhouses and butchers in NRW had already become known on Thursday . "Meat is produced in many places in Germany," Health Minister Jens Spahn replied to a journalist's question at a press conference on Friday. If in doubt, he would buy from another company for now.
Skeptics and critics stand out with their opinions during the Corona crisis. Was the lockdown necessary in this form?
Update from May 8, 11:36 a.m .: The first district in NRW exceeds the critical mark of Merkel's emergency brake . In the district of Coesfeld, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) reported 52.7 infected people per 100,000 inhabitants within the past week on Friday. This should result in immediate restrictive measures following the agreement between the Prime Ministers and Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU).
It was not yet known what these would look like.
Meanwhile, virologist Drosten and hundreds of colleagues warn of fake news related to the corona virus and are massively criticizing Facebook, Google and Twitter.
Skeptics and critics stand out with their opinions during the Corona crisis. Was the lockdown necessary in this form?
Corona in NRW: Relaxation - but nursing home operators oppose Laschet's course
Update of May 7, 7:50 p.m .: The fact that the Bundesliga will resume operations in the middle of the month could be a problem for many cities in North Rhine-Westphalia in the current situation. The cities therefore called for an improved concept for restarting gaming operations. Si up of eighteen Bundesliga clubs play in NRW. Accumulation of fan groups in front of the stadiums should be prevented, the North Rhine-Westphalia City Council announced on Thursday.
Corona virus in NRW: cities demand support for Bundesliga restart
As part of the general easing, the federal and state governments allowed the resumption of the top two football leagues in the second half of May on Wednesday . The game continues without a spectator.
Board of NRW also called for better preparation of the #Bundesliga at its meeting: Concept of the German Football League #DFL for resuming play is not enough & needs to be improved.
To PM: ▶ ️https: //t.co/7ce9ZSfYRt
“We expect fans to meet in front of the stadiums when the game is restarted with ghost games . That is why the German Football League needs to improve its concept, ”said Thomas Hunsteger-Petermann, Chairman of the City Council . "We need answers as to how the clubs will take a closer look at the stadium environment." The fans must be aware that distance and hygiene rules also apply in the fan shops . Control could not only be passed on to the federal and state police and the cities, which is why a communication called for effective coordination between the Bundesliga clubs, the police and the cities.
Coronavirus in NRW: Nursing home operators oppose the government's course
Update, 5:01 p.m .: According to research by Focus Online, many retirement home operators consider the withdrawal of the ban on visits to be premature. Some expressly oppose the course of the state government and strongly advise against visiting relatives in the homes in the next few days . The hasty opening could "cost life", feared home managers in an interview with Focus.de. The homes also want to make visits to the fence or contact them via video chat or telephone.
Corona virus - family visits to the nursing home should continue to be possible only to a limited extent, say operators
© dpa / Jens Büttner
Corona virus in NRW: restaurants should work on digitization
Update, 2:41 pm: In a press conference, Economics Minister Andreas Pinkwart talks about the next steps towards opening up to “responsible normality”. The economic performance going back significantly, unemployment already climb significantly. 152,000 companies in NRW had registered short-time work for 2.5 million employees.
Distance, mouth protection and access restrictions would be implemented professionally, says Pinkwart. "Such necessary but also creative solutions are now in demand in the catering trade ." The influx of guests had to be regulated, for example, by digital solutions - also to "keep track of which guests were on site when".
The catering, hotel and tourism sectors are hit the hardest - they rely on "responsible and careful" openings. As of next Monday, people from two households can therefore sit at one table if the distance to other tables is allowed and visitors register by name . Work on the specifications for hotels is under high pressure, swimming pools could then open again. From May 30, a responsible opening of trade fairs is planned again. Before the summer holidays, a large marketing campaign for NRW as a tourism country will start.
Corona in NRW: Theater will only be open again from September onwards
Play operations in theaters will not start again until the coming season in September - that's what North Rhine-Westphalian Minister of Culture Isabel Pfeiffer-Poensgen expects . Despite the creativity of the houses and quickly presented plans for distance rules and other hygiene regulations, the extensive measures cannot be implemented faster, said the independent minister.
Corona in NRW: Federal state has second most new infections
Update from May 7, 9:15 a.m .: The numbers of the past few days have encouraged: New infections in Germany have dropped to less than 1,000 in the past few days. For Wednesday, the Robert Koch Institute reported increased numbers again. Around 1,284 people in Germany have tested positive for the virus within the last 24 hours. Is the corona virus spreading faster again in Germany? Or have cases of the past few days been added on Wednesday?
For the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, the RKI reports an increase of 272 newly registered infections on Thursday. The state has the second most new infections after Bavaria. The particularly affected federal state reports around 15 infections more than NRW.
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Corona in NRW: First easing decided - open gastronomy and fitness studios
Update of 6 May, 17.00: North Rhine-Westphalia open from 11 Ma i already gastronomy, tourism businesses and gyms . Laschet said, “From May 11th, we can take a big step towards responsible normality. If the people of North Rhine-Westphalia continue as before, we will overcome this crisis together. I am very happy that it was so successful today with a large consensus. ”
In addition, all stores can open if ten square meters are planned for each customer to ensure minimum clearances. Also camping is permitted again, also open Parks again. Small concerts are allowed again from May 11th, and theaters and cinemas open from May 30th. Mask wear is still required in local transport *, however, as previously announced, major events are prohibited until August 31.
In Berlin, an ARD camera team was attacked in a demonstration on Wednesday. In the meantime, Boris Johnson has announced easing for Great Britain, while Spain, on the other hand, is calling for an emergency.
Corona in NRW: Laschet presents the successful implementation of the three-point plan
Update from May 6, 4:45 pm: After the conference, Prime Minister Armin Laschet spoke in front of the journalists' microphones. He explained the three goals of the corona restrictions that were achieved.
" Save time and flatten the curve in the number of infections," was Laschet's first point. This has been achieved with the falling numbers of the past few days. The second goal was to " expand the health system and double capacity". And here too, according to Laschet, real success was achieved. "That was also successful," said the Prime Minister. "Every third ventilation place and every third intensive care bed is free."
The third goal is the NRW plan. They wanted to "show a perspective of what is possible until the end of May, but also what is not possible." This goal was also achieved, "we had a high degree of understanding and acceptance of the rules in the population". Laschet explicitly praised the population and stated: “If it hadn't been that way, we wouldn't be where we are. We rely on people's personal responsibility. "
Current numbers and maps from all counties are shown in the corona virus map for Germany.
Update from May 6, 3.45 p.m .: The press conference is now starting with a long delay. A previous dispute between Merkel and a prime minister is said to have caused the long delay.
Update from May 6, 2.45 p.m .: Chancellor Angela Merkel has already announced a number of innovations that will apply nationwide before the press conference. Training in recreational sports and popular sports under the open sky, for example, should be allowed again, but under certain conditions.
Video: Merkel in the relaxation frenzy in the PK
Corona in NRW: Some easing from the conference is said to have leaked out
According to the information in the picture , all shops - also subject to conditions - should be allowed to reopen. It is also considered very likely that the regulation on the 800 square meters of retail space at the conference fell.
The extension of the contact restrictions in public space is also said to be a matter already decided. The measure to contain the coronavirus * is to be extended until June 5 . However, easing is also to be presented. According to information provided to the German Press Agency by participants, relatives of two households will be able to meet in the future . Due to the low number of infections, you will not only be able to spend time alone in the public space with members of your own household or with another person. Instead, you should be able to stay with another person from another household .
The easing * is supplemented by the mask requirement * that continues to apply in public spaces. In addition, the minimum distance rules apply continuously. A few countries had already committed themselves to various easing of the contact restrictions . The federal and state governments had discussed intensively, with Merkel preferring the Saarland's approach, according to which two households can meet. According to Merkel, two counties in Germany would have to remain in the lockdown due to the infection values.
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Düsseldorf - After the federal-state switch on Wednesday, millions of people in North Rhine-Westphalia will be waiting for the new easing * of the corona measures *. There is a need for action in many areas, which is why Prime Minister Armin Laschet will present a plan for NRW following the conference with the federal government and the country heads . The CDU politician is expected to comment on the future of daycare centers and schools * , sport and the timetable for gastronomy *.
Corona in NRW: easing in sight - parents demand clarity on school issues
Since the decision to continue the school year is a national matter , especially pupils, teachers and partly concerned parents demand clarity and a targeted plan. In all likelihood, the approximately 160,000 fourth graders in NRW will return to primary schools from Thursday. Graduating classes from secondary schools that are about to take their exams are already attending the school again. Concrete plans for grades 1 to 3 are still pending.
When the daycare center * is restarted, the federal states will probably stand behind a common concept of the 16 youth ministers. NRW family minister Joachim Stamp will probably be able to expand the current emergency care. Before the summer holidays, all children should return to daycare centers and schools, as far as the plan. Stamp wanted "maximum freedom for the countries to decide", as he told Spiegel .
Corona in NRW: Greens with criticism for Bundesliga restart - "Must sound like derision for nurses"
There is also a great need for clarification in the area of sport. It is also still unclear whether the way to continue the Bundesliga season in mid-May will be cleared. The many people who expect relaxation in popular sports could expect good news today. Laschet will probably make things easier for mass sports, as Markus Söder had already done for Bavaria on Tuesday. Contactless individual sports such as athletics, tennis and golf can be practiced here again.
Next episode in the Corona thriller: daycare centers, schools, sports, gastronomy - who can hope for further relaxation? After a federal-state switch on Wednesday, decisive decisions are also pending in NRW. https://t.co/brUtTxhoLO pic.twitter.com/XlBwB28Yo9
- WZ Wuppertal (@wzwuppertal) May 6, 2020The Greens in NRW strongly criticized the agenda of their state government and assume an imbalance "in the direction of well-organized economic interests ". Despite the available capacities, nursing homes could not test nationwide and only at short intervals for the Sars-CoV-2 * pathogen, while in the Bundesliga complex concepts for extensive test procedures are being developed. Green country leader Felix Banaszak and faction vice Mehrdad Mostofizadeh clearly positioned themselves in a guest post for the Cologne City Gazette . "The fact that sophisticated protection concepts and a series of tests are being planned for kicking Bundesliga millionaires and that they are high on the Prime Minister's agenda must sound like derision for nursing staff," the article said. The latest Bundesliga scandal involving Hertha striker Salomon Kalou * should not be very helpful for an early Bundesliga start.
Corona in NRW: Gastronomy also hopes to relax soon or a rescue package
The German Hotel and Restaurant Association is also looking forward to the federal and state conference. Bernd Niemeier , President of the association in NRW, expects politicians to warn "the opening of our operations for mid-May and a rescue package that deserves its name". North Rhine-Westphalia has already presented a step-by-step plan to open up the catering and hotel industry.
How long will the crisis last? US researchers are now delivering three scenarios related to the corona virus.
* Merkur.de is part of the nationwide Ippen-Digital network.
List of rubric lists: © dpa / Britta Pedersen