Czech COVID-19 daily tally lowest since September as pupils return to classroom
PRAGUE — The Czech Republic reported its lowest daily tally of new COVID-19 cases since September on Monday, the same day a six-month state of emergency expired and many pupils return to the classroom.
The central European country was badly hit by the latest wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, but the Czech government managed to slow the spread of infections by imposing its toughest lockdown yet.
Students in grades 1-5 were set to return to school on Monday and restrictions on movement eased with people allowed once more to travel outside their home districts.
The government has kept non-essential shops, restaurants and sport and entertainment centers shut almost continuously since October, except for a brief re-opening in December that was quickly reversed amid another surge in COVID-19 cases.
Czech students have faced the longest school closures in the European Union.
Article continues after this advertisementThe state is looking to take a slower approach to relaxing measures this time, hoping to avoid a need to return to lockdowns that could punish the economy, which remains buoyed by factories still running under mandatory worker testing.
Article continues after this advertisementThe country of 10.7 million has reported a total 1.58 million COVID-19 cases since the pandemic started in March 2020 and deaths have neared 28,000, the highest per-capita rate in the world, according to Our World in Data.
The Health Ministry reported 976 new cases on Sunday while the seven-day average dropped to below 4,000, down from a peak of over 12,000 in early March.
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