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Wednesday, September 16, 2020
The number of corona cases has been increasing in Vienna for days. Now the federal government is drawing conclusions and is warning against travel to the Austrian capital. We also advise against traveling to Budapest and some other regions.
The Federal Foreign Office warns against unnecessary tourist trips to Vienna due to the high number of corona infections. It is also extending its travel advisory for parts of France to other areas. This now also applies to the Hauts-de-France region and to the overseas territory of La Réunion, the ministry announced in the evening. The federally owned Robert Koch Institute (RKI) had previously declared Vienna and Budapest as corona risk areas. The federal state of Vienna is so far the only risk zone in Austria.
Other regions, including the Netherlands, Croatia, France and Switzerland, are affected by the risk zone classification. In Switzerland, the canton of Friborg was added, in the Netherlands the provinces of North Holland and South Holland. In Croatia, the counties of Brod-Posavina and Virovitica-Podravina have been declared risk zones, as have the counties of Neamt and Caras Severin in Romania. The Central Bohemian region in the Czech Republic is now also a risk area. The central criterion for classification as a risk area is in which states or regions there have been more than 50 new people infected per 100,000 inhabitants in the last seven days.
Usually shortly after classification as a risk area, a corresponding travel advisory from the Federal Foreign Office follows. A travel warning goes further: although it is not a ban, it is intended to have a significant deterrent effect. However, it also has a silver lining for consumers: it allows travelers to cancel reservations for free.
The crown measures have been tightened again in Austria since Monday. Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz had previously stated on Sunday that, in his opinion, the second wave of infections had started in his country. There has recently been a dramatic increase in corona infections there. According to the Austrian Health Minister Rudolf Anschober, celebrations with family or friends are responsible for the persistently high number of new infections. The country is in a crucial phase, Anschober said. The forecasts differ significantly. The most positive variant predicts a daily increase of about 650 cases, the most pessimistic variants represent 1,500 new daily infections.
Returnees from risk areas should be evaluated
768 new cases were reported during the day. The number of occupied hospital beds is also beginning to increase markedly, Anschober said. With this development, Austria is well above the trend in Germany. Taking into account the number of residents, the number of infections in Austria is three times higher. 3,600 of the around 6,600 currently active cases in Austria are reported from Vienna. Therefore, Switzerland had already included the Austrian capital in the list of risk areas.
In Germany, returnees from risk areas should be tested for coronavirus, unless they can present a current negative result. Until the result is available, they have to self-isolate for 14 days.
