Covid cloud hangs over Oktoberfest parties as cases grow in Munich and Germany

Alternative festivities will kick off amid clear skies and sunshine on Saturday

Credit: REUTERS

Fears are growing in Germany that Oktoberfest parties could lead to a surge in coronavirus infections, pushing the country into a second wave of the pandemic.

The famous festival which normally takes place in Munich every year in September and October was historically cancelled this year for the first time since the Second World War. 

Nevertheless, people will be celebrating this weekend. Alternative festivities — named “WirtshausWiesn” (‘pub Oktoberfest’) — will kick off amid clear skies and sunshine on Saturday, when traditional Oktoberfest would normally begin. 

Over the coming weeks, 50 pub owners hope to create an Oktoberfest atmosphere and carousels and a ferris wheel have also popped up in the city. “For us, Oktoberfest is neither a place nor an event. It’s a deep sense of life which is anchored within us," Gregor Lemke, a spokesman for several of the city’s inns and pubs,” said.

The festival takes place amid rapidly rising infections in Germany and across Europe. New coronavirus infections in Germany have now reached the highest they have been since the end of April, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) announced on Saturday morning. Within a day, Germany reported 2,297 new corona infections, the RKI announced.

People attend a barrel tapping at a beer garden near Theresienwiese, Munich

Credit: REUTERS

Munich and Bavaria are particularly badly affected. The number of new infections per 100,000 inhabitants within a week in Munich reached 50.7 on Friday, which is over the threshold at which measures such as tighter restrictions must be taken. In the state of Bavaria, which includes Munich, the 7-day incidence is considerably higher than the national mean, the RKI also said.

Top German virologist Christian Drosten warned on Friday the situation in Germany “could escalate like other European countries”.  Germans shouldn’t “delude” themselves that things are going very differently from other European countries, he said. 

Last week it was reported that a 26-year-old American woman could face a hefty fine after she allegedly went out partying in the Alpine resort of Garmisch near Munich, despite having coronavirus symptoms, thus starting a wave of infections in the town.

But so far Germany has recently seen only a slight rise in cases, unlike Spain, France and the UK. Last week, Hans Kluge, regional director for Europe for the World Health Organisation (WHO), warned of a dramatic rise in new coronavirus cases in Europe. The surge in cases is a “wake up call” and a “very serious situation,” he said.