France expands COVID-19 curfews after new cases soar

The government officials in France announced that COVID-19 curfews will be extended after the country reported a record 41,622 new confirmed cases of the disease yesterday.

French Prime Minister Jean Castex said the curfews that were imposed in Paris and eight other major cities last week will be expanded to 38 more departments. That means 46 million out of the country’s 67 million, roughly two-thirds of the population, will be forbidden to leave their homes between 9pm and 6am.

France has found itself in a “serious situation” due to the second wave of COVID-19 and it is continuing to “degrade,” Castex said. The number of cases increased by 40% over the past week, while the number of infections has been doubling every 15 days.

“No one can consider themselves safe from this, even young people,” Castex insisted, urging the public to wear a mask, wash their hands, and follow social distancing rules.

Shortly after the restrictions were announced, the French health authorities said a record 41,622 cases were registered in the country on Wednesday. The overall number of infections has now reached 999,043, meaning that, on Friday, France will become the second European nation after Spain to cross the one million mark.

The death toll from the disease in the country now stands at 34,210, with 162 fatalities occurring in the past 24 hours. The number of severe COVID-19 cases that require hospitalization was also up, growing by 847 to a total of 14,032.