BERLIN (Reuters) – German health experts on Saturday warned of any easing of coronavirus blocking measures as the number of cases increased again, increasing the possibility that infections could again peak at Christmas in mid-April. .
The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for infectious diseases predicted that the number of cases reported daily could exceed 30,000 in the 14th week of the year, starting on April 12.
“An extrapolation of trends shows that case numbers can be expected above the Christmas level starting from week 14,” said RKI in its current status report.
On Saturday, the number of COVID-19 cases increased by 12,674 and the death toll by 239, with the number of cases per 100,000 in seven days jumping from 72.4 to 76.1.
The number of deaths from the virus in Germany is 73,301, with a reported number of 2,558,455 infections.
Frustration with the ongoing blockade and the slow pace of vaccinations has diminished support for Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives, also under skeptical fire over a mask-buying scandal involving party lawmakers.
A small group of protesters faced rain in Berlin on Saturday to protest the blockade.
Merkel’s Christian Democrats have seen support wane in two states where Sunday’s regional elections will be a crucial indicator of popular sentiment ahead of federal elections in September.
Merkel and state leaders agreed to a gradual easing of restrictions earlier this month, along with an “emergency brake” to allow authorities to re-enforce restrictions if the number of cases rises above 100 per 100,000 on three consecutive days.
The RKI report said that the rapid spread in Germany of a more infectious virus variant first detected in Britain could mean that the number of cases per 100,000 reaches levels between 200 and 500 in mid-April.
Leaders are due to meet again on March 22 to discuss whether further relaxation of the rules is possible.
“We can only have more relaxation if there are steady or falling case numbers,” Karl Lauterbach, a health expert for the Social Democrats, told the Augsburger Allgemeine newspaper, adding that this would be unlikely in the near future.
Emma Thomasson reporting; Ros Russell Edition