German Chancellor Merkel goes shopping as country prepares to battle out virus, video goes viral

As European countries urged their citizens to stay at home in their efforts to fight coronavirus. Shopping centres across the Europe saw massive footfall as citizens tried to stock maximum foodstuff before they go indoors.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel also went shopping in the centre of Berlin late on Friday and bought toilet roll as well as three bottles of wine, German media reported on Saturday.

Shops in the German capital have occasionally been running out of some goods, with toilet roll seen as a particular problem as people stock up during the coronavirus crisis.

Employees at the supermarket in Berlin say the chancellor is a regular visitor.

The Bild newspaper's website and the RTL media network reported that she filled her shopping cart with cherries, soap, wine and toilet paper, among other things. She paid by card at the checkout.

Crowded street in Berlin's Prenzlauer Berg district, despite the government's recommandations to stay at home. AFP

Germany’s Robert Koch Institute on Sunday said that the total number of deaths in Germany from coronavirus stands at 55, an increase of 9 from 46 reported on Saturday.

Number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Germany ross to 18,610, an increase of 1,948 on Sunday.

Merkel plans to hold a video conference with the governors of Germany's 16 states Sunday to discuss whether further measures are needed to prevent people spreading the coronavirus.

Germany's states have imposed varying levels of lockdown, causing a heated debate about which measures are appropriate to contain the virus.

Some officials have called for the rules to be the same nationwide.

While Bavaria has ordered people to stay indoors with few exceptions, Berlin still allows gatherings of up to 10 people.