GERMAN DOCTORS WARN OF 2ND WAVE OF COVID-19 INFECTIONS

German doctors warned on Sunday, May 24, 2020, that the mass movement of holidaymakers could prompt a second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic as Berlin eases on restrictions.

Max Geraedts, a doctor and health researcher at the University of Marburg, told Deutsche Welle (DW) and the Deutsche Presse-Agentur (dpa) news agency that large gatherings could lead to "another sharp increase" in infections. "If you walk alone on the beach, no matter where in the world, then, of course it doesn't matter… But when you go to a bar where there are lots of people, it can have unpleasant results."

Another senior medical expert, Hajo Zeep, from the Leibniz Institute for Prevention Research and Epidemiology in Bremen warned that there is still not enough immunity in the population to prevent a second wave. "Considering that a very small portion of the population is likely to be immune so far, it is clear that the virus could spread quickly if the conditions are right," Zeep told dpa.

Germany has begun to relax some lockdown measures earlier this month, which allowed bars, restaurants, hair salons and retail stores to reopen and hotels and vacation homes have been told they can welcome guests once more — under certain conditions and depending on state rules. German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas and his counterparts in other European Union states have said that travel restrictions across the bloc could be lifted by mid-June. #COVID19