Visitors wear masks as Cologne museum reopens

A museum in Cologne reopened on Tuesday as restrictions imposed since March are loosened, allowing Germans to visit some public spaces.

Though social distancing measures are still enforced, authorities agreed last week to reopen playgrounds, churches and cultural institutions such as museums and zoos, that have been shuttered due to the pandemic.

The Museum Ludwig in Cologne reopened on the provisos that staff and visitors wear face masks and the ticket office and is separated from the visitors by glass panels.

Distance markings are placed across the museum floors to help visitors maintain a safe distance.

The total number of visitors may not exceed 400 persons at any one time and the security staff makes sure that not too many visitors are in the same area of the museum, according to a museum press release.

Germany has registered over 167,000 cases of the coronavirus and 6,993 deaths, according to figures from the Johns Hopkins University tally.

On Monday the head of the country's disease control centre said there would be a second wave of coronavirus infections, but that the nation was well-prepared to deal with it.