Berlin Hospital in Germany Closed Due to Cluster Infection of UK Variant Virus

Variant Virus Infections Originating from Brazil Also Confirmed

[Image source= AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Byunghee Park] A new variant of the coronavirus (COVID-19) is spreading in Germany.

According to German media on the 23rd, 14 staff and patients at Humboldt Hospital in Berlin, the capital of Germany, were confirmed to be collectively infected with the UK-origin variant virus, leading to the closure of the entire building.

Berlin health authorities closed the entire hospital building and quarantined staff and patients to prevent the spread of the variant virus. The hospital has stopped accepting new patients, and emergency patients are being transferred to other hospitals. Experts estimate that dozens of staff and patients at this hospital have been infected with the variant virus. There is also a possibility that family members or acquaintances of the hospital staff have been infected.

The Brazil-origin variant virus has also been confirmed to have landed in Germany. Health authorities announced that a German citizen who returned to Hesse, Germany, from a trip to Brazil was confirmed to be infected with the Brazil-origin COVID-19 variant virus. This is the first case in Germany.

Frankfurt University Hospital was notified the previous day that an asymptomatic COVID-19 infected person was on a Brazil-origin flight. The hospital stated that PCR test results confirmed that the citizen was infected with the Brazil-origin variant virus.

The Brazil-origin variant virus emerged in regions where COVID-19 spread rapidly to the point of herd immunity. Because of this, even people who have recovered from COVID-19 may be reinfected, making it more difficult to prevent its spread.

In Germany, the number of new COVID-19 cases has been gradually decreasing recently, leading to forecasts that the full lockdown measures might be eased after mid-February. However, with the emergence of variant viruses, the likelihood of maintaining full lockdown measures is increasing.

The German federal government extended the full lockdown order, originally scheduled to end on the 31st of this month, until the 14th of next month on the 19th. German Chancellor Angela Merkel also stated that border controls between European countries should be strengthened to block the variant virus.

Christian Drosten of Charit? Hospital, regarded as Germany’s top infectious disease expert, said, "We need to patiently observe how much the COVID-19 variant virus is spreading," warning that "if lockdown measures are eased too early, in the worst case, there could be 100,000 new confirmed cases per day."