Germany Reports 200,000 New COVID-19 Cases in One Day... Highest Ever Recorded

Hospitalizations Surge After Infection in Children Under 5 Years Old

On the 24th (local time) in downtown Berlin, Germany, protesters condemned the government's COVID-19 quarantine measures. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Minwoo Lee] Germany's daily new COVID-19 cases have surpassed 200,000 for the first time ever.

On the 27th (local time), according to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), which is equivalent to South Korea's Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, Germany reported 203,136 new COVID-19 cases within the past 24 hours. This is the largest number recorded to date. During this period, 188 people died from COVID-19.

After exceeding 100,000 for the first time on the 19th, the number surpassed 200,000 in just eight days. Compared to other major European countries such as France, the United Kingdom, and Italy, the spread of infection had been slower, but it has recently surged sharply.

The spread of the Omicron variant in Germany has also increased rapidly. Already on the 14th, 73.3% of new cases were attributed to Omicron infections. By the 25th, the proportion of Omicron cases rose to 91%. The indicator for new COVID-19 cases over the past week per 100,000 population surged to 1,017.4.

Germany's S?ddeutsche Zeitung (SZ) reported that the number of new admissions to hospital intensive care units has started to increase for the first time since the spread of the Delta variant stopped in early winter.

It particularly pointed out a sharp rise in hospitalizations among children under five years old. While the indicator for new COVID-19 cases per population is highest among those aged 5 to 14, it is estimated that 5.9 to 7.5 children per 100,000 population under five years old were infected with COVID-19 and hospitalized.