Reopening Shops Has Not Increased Coronavirus Infections – Austria

Austria’s loosening of its coronavirus lockdown three weeks ago, in which thousands of shops reopened, has not led to a new spike in infections, though further vigilance is necessary, its health minister said on Tuesday.

Theguardian.com reports that  the Alpine country acted early to tackle the viral pandemic, closing bars, restaurants, schools, theatres, non-essential shops and other gathering places seven weeks ago.

That helped cut the daily increase in infections to less than 1% and keep deaths relatively low – with just 606 reported so far.

Nigeria and Ghana in West Africa have also loosened their coronavirus lockdown and there are fears that infections may increase.

Buoyed by the less than one percent rate during lockdown, on  April 14, Austria became one of the first countries in Europe to loosen its lockdown, reopening DIY and garden centres as well as shops of up to 400 sq metres – twice the playing area of a singles tennis court.

“We can now examine and assess the effects of 14 April and the following days very, very well and they show that we managed this first opening step excellently,” health ministe r Rudolf Anschobert, told a news conference.

“We have no indication of a noticeable increase in individual areas. The situation is very, very constant, very, very stable and that is a really very, very positive, good situation,” he said.

The daily increase in infections, he added, is 0.2%.

However, current data does not reflect the impact of a more recent loosening from  May 1 when hairdressers, other service providers and shops of more than 400 sq metres were allowed to reopen.

Further steps are planned by Austria, with restaurants, bars, museums and hotels all due to reopen this month.

After relaxing its lockdown on Monday, May 4, Nigeria is also likely to assess the impact of the loosening on the coronavirus infection rate after the first week.