(27 Feb 2020) Germany's Interior Minister said Thursday that after the emergence of cases of new virus infections in Europe and in Germany, "the situation has worsened considerably". Horst Seehofer spoke as authorities tested dozens of people who had contact with a couple infected with the virus.
Germany has been bracing for an increase in confirmed cases since the number of infected people spiked Friday in nearby Italy.
The testing in western Germany came after a 47-year-old man with the virus was hospitalized in serious condition in Duesseldorf.
The man's wife, who works in a kindergarten, was also confirmed to have contracted the virus.
A soldier in the German air force who had contact with the hospitalized man also has tested positive.
The cases brought Germany's total to 21.
The government announced late Wednesday it would establish an emergency task force to tackle the outbreak.
"The crisis committee met in a larger group yesterday and took its first decisions," German Health Minister Jens Spahn told a news conference on Thursday.
Spahn said air travellers from infected areas will in future be required to provide information on their whereabouts after landing, "not only when they arrive from China, but also from South Korea, Japan, Iran and Italy," he said.
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