coronavirus czech republic Archives

From Saturday, July 25 at midnight, it will be mandatory to wear face masks at indoor public gatherings with over 100 people, including nightclubs. The Health Minister Adam Vojtěch (ANO) informed Czech Television today afternoon.

“We are not planning to close certain industries or limit the free movement of people, but prevention is needed. The measures taken are based on information from the regional hygienic stations,” said Vojtěch.

“This measure does not concern shops or restaurants, but specifically sports and cultural events,” the minister specified.

A maximum of 500 people seated in five separate sectors, each comprising 100 people, will be allowed at indoor events.

The number of cases is growing, but the risk group over the age of 65 is not affected and there are no more serious cases that require hospitalization. “However, a number of smaller outbreaks show that there may be potential for a community spread,” said the minister.

An outbreak of coronavirus linked to a music club in Prague has recently increased to 98 cases, including footballers from several of the city’s clubs.

PM Babiš stressed that the Czech Republic had managed the first wave of the epidemic very well, but expressed concerns about the daily increase in coronavirus cases.

The number of new cases in the Czech Republic has been growing significantly in recent days. On Tuesday, the country recorded 212 new positive people. On Wednesday, 247.

The number of active coronavirus infections topped 5,000 in the Czech Republic for the first time after labs reported the highest daily rise in nearly a month.

The Czech government will discuss the resumption of the Central Crisis Staff on Monday.

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The day-to-day increase of new confirmed COVID-19 cases in the Czech Republic has surpassed 200 for the second straight day.

Health Minister Adam Vojtěch says the number of infected reached 247 on Wednesday, the biggest increase since June 28.

One of the latest clusters appeared in Prague where 76 people have been infected in a nightclub.

Vojtěch added that “the government will discuss a possible return of some nationwide restrictions” but did not give any further details.

“I want to wait until Friday and see how the situation develops. If there is no stagnation with the number of new patients, then we will probably have to take certain preventive measures throughout the country,” Vojtěch said.

Most likely, wearing face masks in indoor spaces will become compulsory again and the limit for participants in public events will be reduced. The restrictions should come into effect on Monday, July 27th.

The numbers are mainly influenced by the large outbreak in Moravia-Silesia, but the worsening of the situation is observed in some other regions.

Currently, there are 5,062 people in the country who are sick with the coronavirus, according to Ministry of Health data.

The Czech Republic has had 14,570 cases with 364 deaths.

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The tally of active cases of the new coronavirus in the Czech Republic has risen to 4,764, above the previous high of 4,737 seen in April, health ministry data showed on Sunday.

The new cases are mostly registered in the north-east where a mine outbreak occurred and have so far been milder than before.

The active cases have gone up as the daily has been above 100 over the past few days, outscoring the number of recoveries.

Outbreaks are rising in the region, and Covid-19 is spreading to at-risk groups over the age of 65.

The number of people in hospitals was 135 on Saturday, far below capacities of the national health system as presented by the government.

On Friday, authorities tightened coronavirus restrictions in the Moravian-Silesian region. Under the tightening of restrictions, the compulsory wearing of face coverings has been reintroduced, while restaurant opening hours have been reduced.

Workers crossing the borders of Poland and Slovakia to start their job must submit a negative test every two weeks for COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus.

Additionally, checks have been implemented for individuals at border-crossings.

The Czech Republic had 13,885 confirmed cases of coronavirus infection, with 113 new infections on Saturday. So far, 358 people have died.

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The Czech government confirmed on Saturday, July 11, that Serbia and Montenegro were added to the list of countries with a high coronavirus risk.

As a result, Czechs need a 14-day quarantine or a COVID-19 test upon returning to their home country.

Serbia

Serbia recorded 18 fatalities and 386 new cases over 24 hours in what Prime Minister Ana Brnabic described as a “dramatic increase”.

A wave of new infections came after a number of sporting events were allowed to go ahead amid minimal social distancing.

These included a tennis tournament organised by multiple grand slam champion Novak Djokovic, who tested positive for coronavirus along with three other participants at his ill-fated Adria Tour.

To date, Serbia has logged 370 coronavirus deaths and almost 18,000 cases.

Montenegro

In the last 24 hours, 58 people out of 468 tested on coronavirus were conformed positive, the country’s Institute for Public Health said on Friday, the FoNet news agency reported.

It added that there were 733 active cases.

Since the beginning of June, ten people died in the coastal republic, while in the last 24 hours, five patients recovered.

Podgorica declared the end of the epidemic on June 2.

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The daily number of new cases in the Czech Republic jumped to 260, the highest since April 8, Ministry Adam Vojtěch confirmed on Sunday morning.

As CT reports, that is nearly triple that of the 93 recorded on Thursday.

Chief public health officer, Jarmila Rážová, said the rise was due to massive screenings in areas where the virus is spreading quickly, including a mine in Silesia Region and a company in the north.

She also said that Czechs “did not behave in a responsible manner” when restrictions were relaxed after the health situation in the country improved. “However, the outbreak is under control and confined to local clusters,” she added.

On the contrary, according to Vojtěch, the situation in Prague is calming down. “The number of cases in Prague is declining over time,” he added.

The number of tests performed on Saturday (1,862) is lower by about half compared to Friday’s (4,300 tests).

The Czech Republic has had 11,306 confirmed cases while 347 people have died, according to Health Ministry figures released on Sunday morning.

There are currently 3270 patients. Most of them have a mild course of the infection, 122 are hospitalized.

The government has gradually removed most restrictions, apart from wearing masks indoors and limits on pub opening hours and large cultural events.

Last Monday, public gatherings of up to 1,000 people are allowed.

Czech scientists from the T. G. Masaryk Water Research Institute (VÚV TGM) have had promising results in detecting a coming coronavirus epidemic before it starts to spread in the population. The researchers found that, after several months of research, the only thing they need is a sample of wastewater.

Because bacteria and viruses do not get leave the body only through respiratory droplets but also through excrement, wastewater could become a valuable source of information.

“Indeed, it seems that this approach could be used as a basis for an early warning system for detecting the onset of another epidemic,” explains Hana Mlejnková of VÚV TGM, who is in charge of the wastewater project.

Czechia is one of the pioneers of wastewater research, one of only six countries in the world that have been able to carry out such demanding research.

“If it turns out to be a reliable tool, it will become one of the possible ways to detect a coming second wave,” says Jan Kynčl, head of the Department of Infectious Diseases Epidemiology at the State Institute of Public Health.

However, researchers had little reason to be optimistic in early April because, for a long time, they could not find the virus in the wastewater.

“At the beginning, it was surprising that we did not find any traces of coronavirus in the large wastewater treatment plants, as we knew there was a high number of infected individuals in the area,” says Mlejnková.

But the situation changed when the first results from small wastewater treatment plants in the municipalities arrived. Suddenly, scientists started to detect the coronavirus in these samples, even though the number of infected people in municipalities was, on average, much lower than in cities.

This was an important signal for researchers. It turned out that traces of the virus can be found in wastewater and that the method works, even if there are only a few coronavirus patients in the area. Researchers from the VÚV TGM explain that the small dilution and short piping probably made it easier to detect the virus. Thus, the small wastewater treatment plants could be a pillar of a coronavirus early warning system in the future.

“It will probably be necessary to identify critical places, in which the number of infected individuals could grow rapidly, but at the same time, the wastewater in the area will be concentrated,” comments Mlejnková on further steps of the research.

As wastewater treatment plant operators take samples regularly, the new method would not impose any additional burden on employees at the wastewater treatment plants.

“The early warning system could be implemented right away,” Mlejnková believes, pointing out that if the method proves successful, it could detect not only COVID-19 but also warn against other epidemics.

The Czech Republic allows from today gatherings of up to 500 people as coronavirus infections remained among the lowest in Europe.

“If the epidemiological situation remains favorable, the limit will grow to 1,000 on June 22,” Minister of Health Vojtech said of the size of gatherings that would be permissible.

Cinemas, theatres, and concert halls are no longer bound to respect strict social distancing rules that severely limited the size of the audience. Outdoor areas of pubs, restaurants, and cafes no longer need to close by 11 pm.

Some credit the success in stemming infections to the mandatory face mask rule, which remains compulsory in shops, offices, and on public transport.

Interior Minister Jan Hamacek credited an early warning from an unnamed expert encouraging the government to act quickly in early March.

“When I saw a mathematical model using data from Italy, I realized we were facing a train wreck,” Hamacek added.

“We still do not underestimate the situation,” said Vojtech. “The virus is still here and that is why people should follow the rules. Wear the face mask, and keep a safe distance when possible” he added.

The Czech Republic had 9,628 confirmed cases of coronavirus infection by Monday morning. So far 6,891 people have recovered and 327 people have died.

After 73 days, restaurants and pubs in the Czech Republic were able to open their indoor premises on May 25. According to new data from Storyous, a quarter of restaurants, along with some pubs and cafes, did not re-open after the coronavirus lockdown.

Storyous, a cloud POS system – which supplies cash register systems to 3,000 businesses in the Czech Republic, shows that almost 25 percent of restaurants, bistros, and bars remained closed.

“The number of indoor premises on Monday, June 1, was the same as last week. It is possible that a quarter of the restaurants will not open at all,” said the CEO of Storyous Igor Třeslín.

Stouryous maps individual companies through their cash registers. Restaurants can also create orders for suppliers through the system. “At the moment, 22 percent of companies have EET turned off in the cash registers,” added Třeslín.

“The average restaurant or small pub will have probably about two to three weeks cash flow in reserve, that ran out and we have staff not getting money as businesses have no money to give them. Even if you lock up your building, there are fixed costs, alarms, security, insurance. All of that goes on, people are at their wits’ ends,” says Daniel Kolský from Café Jedna, which has officially closed after six years.

“The current situation is not economically sustainable for us. Our goal will be to find someone to take over the business and continue what we have been trying to build for three years,” stated the official Facebook page of Miska Ramen.

Other bars have turned to technology to help adhere to social distancing.

Lubos Kastner, who runs several bar-restaurants in the Czech Republic, said his outlets have QR codes on the tables that fire up the menu on customers’ smartphones, allowing them to order without a member of staff having to come over.

“We’re operating on a reduced capacity until spring 2021 by which time hopefully they will have a treatment or a vaccine,” adds Kastner.

Yet many of Europe’s breweries and bars might not have that long. They need an antidote to financial ruin, and soon, or the hangover may prove to be fatal.

Czech health authorities believe the spread of the new coronavirus is under control despite an uptick in cases in recent days.

The country is preparing to open pubs, hotels, and relax mask-wearing rules on Monday.

Public events for up to 300 people will be allowed next week, and swimming pools and schools will reopen. An initial easing of restrictions from May 11 had not had an adverse effect, Health Minister Adam Vojtech said.

“There are no negative trends noted, it is still valid that the Czech Republic has managed the situation very well,” he added.

The country had recorded 8,757 cases of Covid-19 by Friday morning, with 306 deaths.

Chief public health officer Jarmila Razova said there were currently two main local infection hot spots. In Prague, there were 50 new daily cases on average since May 1 scattered across the whole city. In the east of the country, more than 100 cases have been identified, mostly among the miners from one shaft and their families.

The Czech Republic took early action in March to close borders, schools, and much of the services sector and has also been eager to relax many of the restrictions.

In Prague, there were 50 new daily cases on average since May 1 scattered across the whole city, a presentation showed.

The overall number of hospitalized patients had dropped by two thirds from the peak to 150 on Friday.

The Czech Ministry of the Interior paid 708 million CZK to the Chinese company Eastern Air Logistics for 49 flights transporting protective equipment during the state of emergency.

Facing an acute shortage of protective gear for medical staff in the early days of the coronavirus outbreak, the government reached a deal to buy masks and other equipment from China, where the virus first emerged.

The data was provided by the Ministry of the Interior on the basis of the Act on Free Access to Information, Zdopravy.cz wrote today.

The total amount does not include the Ruslan cargo and the transport of material from China by Smartwings and CSA.

The Ministry of the Interior also paid for the last Antonov An-124 cargo plane with medical supplies from Shenzhen to Pardubice. The state paid 18.9 million CZK to Volga Dnepr.

Since March 20, aircraft have carried around 2,000 tons of respirators and other materials from China to the Czech Republic.

On May 4, the Czech Interior Minister and Central Crisis Staff head Jan Hamáček thanked all those who participated in the mission, especially the firefighters and police officers who helped unload and distribute the materials.

The border with Austria could be opened to tourists by mid-June without the need for a negative COVID-19 test or quarantine.

“The Czech government is discussing a similar agreement with Slovakia,” said Foreign Minister Tomáš Petříček (ČSSD)on Tuesday after a video conference with the foreign ministers of both countries.

“With Austria, we have confirmed our interest in opening our borders to our citizens and for travel by mid-June, especially for tourists,” said Petříček.

“Borders with all neighbouring states – Poland, Germany, Austria and Slovakia – could be open by mid-June,” added Petříček.

Health Minister Adam Vojtech “had proposed that as of June 8, travel to and from a list of risky countries – to be determined but currently likely to include Spain, Italy or France – would be subject to the current requirements while others deemed safe – such as Austria, Slovakia or Croatia – would be exempt.”

Austria, Slovakia, and Croatia, for example, would be among the non-risk countries; Greece and Bulgaria should be also added to this list.

Vojtech said the list of risky countries would be updated continuously.

With Greece, the Czech Republic is negotiating a variant of traveling without the need for a negative COVID-19 test. According to Monday’s statement by Deputy Foreign Minister Martin Smolek, Greece could be open to Czech tourists from 1 July.

From May 26th it will be possible to cross the borders and return if you have a negative COVID test. The government will clarify which crossings will open later this week.

“The government has today agreed that the border regime will be relaxed from May 26th; it will be possible to cross at several border crossings and checks will only be random. With valid exceptions, the obligation to submit a negative test for COVID-19 when entering the Czech Republic will continue to apply,” said Interior Minister Jan Hamáček.

The Czech Republic reported 111 new cases of COVID-19 on Monday. This is the highest daily increase since April 21.

The laboratories performed 7349 tests. The ratio of infected COVID-19 compared to the number of people tested rose to 1.51 percent on Monday. It is the highest percentage from the beginning of May.

The rise is partly due to an outbreak reported by state-owned coal miner OKD at its Darkov mine near the eastern town of Karvina, close to the Polish border, Czech Radio reported.

The Ministry of Health published the new data today (Tuesday, May 19) at 9 am.

The Czech Republic had 8,594 confirmed cases of coronavirus infection by Tuesday morning. So far 5,642 people have recovered and 299 people have died.

In the first week after the reopening, IKEA stores in the Czech Republic were visited by 135,650 people. In the year-on-year comparison, IKEA doubled the sales. The store in Prague’s Černý Most between May 11 and 15 saw a 28 percent increase in attendance compared to last year.

Meanwhile, the government eased the regulation which obliges people to wear face masks in public. As of Tuesday, May 19, office workers will not have to wear masks at the workplace if they observe the social distancing requirements.

Czechs no longer need to wear face masks in most public spaces starting on May 25, in the latest easing of restrictions it put in place to curb the new coronavirus outbreak.

But people will soon only need masks on public transport, in shops and in other closed public spaces that also include theaters and cinemas. The government kept in place a recommendation for people to wear them in open-air spaces.

The government is also planning to further ease travel to and from countries deemed safe of risks from the coronavirus from June 8, Health Minister Adam Vojtech said on Monday.

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