Germany reports 12,097 new COVID-19 cases as country enters second lockdown

Two pedestrians wearing face masks walk on a street in Frankfurt, Germany, on Nov. 2, 2020. New COVID-19 infections in Germany increased by 12,097 within one day to a total of 545,027 as the country entered its second partial lockdown, the federal government agency for disease control and prevention Robert Koch Institute (RKI) announced on Monday. (Xinhua/Lu Yang)

BERLIN, Nov. 2 (Xinhua) -- New COVID-19 infections in Germany increased by 12,097 within one day to a total of 545,027 as the country entered its second partial lockdown, the federal government agency for disease control and prevention Robert Koch Institute (RKI) announced on Monday.

After COVID-19 infections reached a new record last week, the federal and state governments agreed on far-reaching restrictions on daily life such as tougher contact restrictions and the closure of restaurants and bars for the month of November.

The pandemic was a "situation of the century," Minister of Health Jens Spahn told the German broadcaster ZDF on Sunday. It was evident that the pandemic could not be brought under control without government measures.

The number of COVID-19 patients requiring intensive care treatment almost tripled in the past two weeks to 2,061 on Sunday, according to the latest daily situation report by the RKI. On Monday, the number of deaths caused by the coronavirus rose by 49 within one day to a total of 10,530.

Spahn did not want to promise that the month-long lockdown in Germany would be the last of its kind. "Nobody can rule out the possibility that it will not happen again at some point in the future."

As the world is struggling to contain the pandemic, countries including Germany, China, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States are racing to find a vaccine.

According to the website of the World Health Organization, as of Oct. 29, there were 201 COVID-19 candidate vaccines being developed worldwide, and 45 of them were in clinical trials.