Germany has surpassed 50,000 COVID-19 deaths, according to data released Friday by the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), the country’s disease control agency.

In the past 24 hours, Germany reported 859 new deaths linked to Covid-19, bringing the total number to 50,642. The RKI index also recorded 17,862 new infections with the Coronavirus, bringing the total to 2,106,262.

So far, Germany has vaccinated 1401,693 people – about 1.7% of its population – according to RKI data. Among those vaccinated, there were 341,768 nursing home residents and about 468,814 medical workers, according to data from the nation’s federal states.

More stringent measures: On Thursday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel urged Germans to take the spread of the new, more contagious type of coronavirus „very seriously”.

Earlier in the week, Germany extended the nationwide lockdown until February 14, with stricter rules in place, including making FFP2 masks mandatory in public places and forcing German companies to allow employees to work from home until mid-March, wherever possible.