The German Foreign Office had already advised against all non-essential travel abroad on Sunday, but the government added weight to that measure by issuing the warning, telling citizens that leaving the country currently presents a danger to life.

Such a government warning had so far only been issued during the ongoing crisis for the Chinese region of Hubei, where the new coronavirus originated.

Meanwhile, German holidaymakers were facing difficult journeys home due to travel restrictions imposed by other countries since Europe has become the new epicentre of the pandemic.

Foreign Minister Heiko Maas on Tuesday said up to 50 million euros (55.6 million dollars) would be spent on special flights to bring thousands of German tourists home, speaking of an “airlift.”

The government’s agency for disease control has upped the threat posed by the outbreak across the country from “moderate” to “high.”

Robert Koch Institute President Lothar Wieler said the reassessment was based on increasing infections and warning signs from public health facilities and hospitals.

In addition, an increasing number of infections can not be traced back to known cases.

Over 6,000 infections have been confirmed in Germany so far, including 13 deaths.

The German Hospital Federation (DKG) said around 500 people are currently receiving treatment for Covid-19, the potentially fatal disease caused by the coronavirus, in the country’s hospitals.

DKG President Gerald Gass told the Funke media group that this number is expected to triple in the coming days, while adding that hospitals could still cope with this rise.

Drastic measures have been taken in Germany to reduce people’s movements, with schools shut across most of the country, border controls in place and strict advice against socializing.

The school closures are causing a headache for millions of parents, with single parents particularly affected.

The Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) on Tuesday released data showing that 692,000 single parents with children under the age of 13 were in work in 2018. Some 292,000 were employed full-time.

Ninety per cent of single working parents were women.

Companies are being urged to offer ways for employees to work from home.