LONDON – The number of cases of coronavirus is spreading around the world, including in countries praised for controlling the spread, and threatening another round of lockdowns.
More than 22.1 million people have been infected and 781,366 killed worldwide, according to Johns Hopkins University.
Germany saw its highest jump in new cases since May 1 on Tuesday with 1,510 confirmed infections, according to the country’s disease control center, the Robert Koch Institute. One of the factors contributing to the uptick is an “increasing number of cases among travel reporters,” the institute said.
Although the rise is cause for concern in the country which is seen as a leader in controlling the spread, the numbers are much lower than the peak in April when more than 6,000 new infections were recorded daily.
A total of 226,914 were infected in Germany, while 9,243 died.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel did not say that stricter exclusion measures were necessary when visiting the state of North Rhine-Westphalia on Tuesday, but added that reducing current restrictions would not be an option if cases increased.
Growth may be high among European countries, but it shows up compared to the spread in the United States.
The US continues to lead the world with 5.5 million cases and 172,783 deaths, according to NBC News tracking. It is followed by Brazil, which has reported more than 3.4 million cases and more than 109,000 deaths.
South Korea, which has long been hit by hard-hit countries with robust rail efforts, is seeing its caseload rise again.
For a straight week, the country has seen daily triple-digit increases in cases with 306 confirmed infections on Wednesday, the country’s control center reported.
“We are at a serious crossroads for COVID-19 quarantine measures,” said Kwon Jun Wook, Deputy Director-General of the Centers for Disease Control, in a briefing.
“If we do not control the spread of infection … then our daily lives will be severely curtailed and our existence will be limited and create significant social and economic problems for the whole nation,” Kwon said.
Stricter social distance measures have been imposed on the city of Incheon and environs, as well as the capital city of Seoul, whose number of infections to churches continues to rise.
The country’s deputy health minister, Kim Gang Lip, said rail contacts would also be refurbished to prevent the spread from entering much of urban urban centers.
Falls are also raging in the island nations of the Philippines and Indonesia.
The Philippines is the hardest hit for any Southeast Asian country with its total confirmed cases reaching 173,774 on Wednesday as 4,650 new cases were confirmed. At least 2,795 died.
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Despite the growing number of infections, the government on Wednesday eased strict blockade in the capital Manila and nearby provinces to allow more business institutions to resume operations.
The Indonesian Ministry of Health reported another 1,902 cases on Wednesday, bringing the total to 144,945. Another 69 people were killed, bringing his death toll to 6,334.
Strict lockdowns with roadside checkpoints at military checkpoints are good in Australia, where cases went up by 216 on Tuesday.
The Australian state of Victoria declared a state of disaster on August 2 and extended its detention for another four weeks on Sunday as officials scrambled to stop the virus.
Reuters contributed to this report.
Carlo Angerer and Stella Kim contributed.
