German town converts gym hall to hold virus quarantine offenders

MENDEN, Germany (Reuters) - A German town has turned a gymnastics hall into a facility to hold potential offenders against quarantine rules that stipulate a 14-day isolation period for those who test positive for the coronavirus and those who come into contact with them.

Equipped with 20 camping beds, mattresses, and toilets stacked with toilet paper - an increasingly hard-to-find commodity, the hall in the western town of Menden is empty for now. But council head Sebastian Arlt said he was open about who the facility might be used for.