Coronavirus rampages through Europe with record cases in Germany, Poland and Netherlands

German expert says country must prepare for possibility of uncontrolled spread of pandemic

Germany saw its highest-ever daily total for coronavirus cases on Thursday (EPA)

Coronavirus has not shown signs of slowing down in Europe as multiple countries recorded their highest-ever daily totals since the start of the pandemic.    

Germany, Croatia and Austria are among those who announced a record number of new Covid-19 cases on Thursday, as thousands of infections were added to their national tallies. 

Meanwhile, Poland and the Netherlands reported their highest daily totals for a second day running, at around 12,000 and 9,000 respectively. 

Ukraine recorded around 7,000 new cases on Thursday – its largest daily figure to date.

The record rises come amid a surge in coronavirus across a Europe still reeling from the first wave of coronavirus.

In Belgium, Sophie Wilmès – who has been prime minister for most of the pandemic – went into intensive care with the virus on Thursday. The country is second only to the Czech Republic in Europe in terms of infections per capita in the past two weeks.

Over in Spain, the total number of coronavirus cases topped 1 million this week, with the health minister calling for “drastic measures” on Thursday.

A major surge in Covid-19 infections in France has led to a new curfew in Paris and eight other cities, which came into force over the weekend.

On Thursday, the head of Germany’s disease control centre said the country must prepare for the possibility of an uncontrolled spread of the coronavirus pandemic, but is still able to slow it.

The warning came as 11,287 new coronavirus infections were added to the German national total, shattering the previous record figure of around 7,800 daily infections set over the weekend.

Germany is set to receive coronavirus patients from stretched hospitals in the Netherlands – where daily cases have also hit a new high – within days, the Dutch hospital association said on Thursady.

A record 9,271 new infections were reported in the Netherlands on the same day.

Poland also set a new record of 12,100 cases in a 24-hour period on Thursday, ahead of an expected announcement into further Covid-19 measures, including a ban on wedding parties.

Around 1,660 infections were reported in Slovenia, 2,400 in Austria and 1,500 in Croatia on Thursday – the highest daily rises in all countries since the coronavirus pandemic began. 

Ukraine registered a daily record of 7,053 Covid-19 cases, the national security council said on Thursday, up from a previous record of 6,719 the day before. 

Meanwhile, Bosnia, reported 999 new infections on Thursday – the country’s largest single-day rise to date. 

Additional reporting by agencies