PARIS (Reuters) – France reported 1,346 new coronavirus infections on Friday, representing a total of 187,919, as the daily count of new cases remained above 1,300 for the third consecutive day, a level last seen during the closing.
FILE PHOTO: Healthcare workers collect samples at a test site to detect possible coronavirus infections after a cluster of cases emerged due to the illegal opening of the Hacienda Cafe nightclub in Quiberon, France on July 29 2020. REUTERS / Caroline Paillez
At the end of the first month of school holidays, with millions of French people traveling and mingling with friends and family who haven’t seen each other for weeks, the infection rate has returned to a level last reported in late April, when the epidemic was in full swing and a strict lock was in place.
Comparisons can be difficult, as the health ministry does not publish data every day and sometimes adds batches of historical data to single-day numbers. But the seven-day moving average (7DMA), which smooths out such irregularities, is now above 1,000 for the second consecutive day.
Except in early May, when the 7DMA was above 1,000 for a week due to a data revision, the 7DMA was above 1,000 from March 19 to May 1, peaking at 4.5537 on March 1. April.
On Friday, the government gave local authorities the power to order the use of face masks in open-air public spaces as the country fights against the resurgence of COVID-19.
But while new infections have returned to blocking and pre-blocking levels, fewer people are dying or seriously ill compared to a few months ago.
The Health Ministry said Friday that the number of people in the hospital with COVID-19 fell from 77 to 5,298, continuing an uninterrupted drop from a peak of 32,292 on April 14.
The number of patients in intensive care also continued to decline, declining by 10 to 371 and compared with a peak of 7,148 on April 8.
In the past 24 hours, 11 people died from the virus, bringing the total to 30,265.
In April, France had several days with more than 1,000 deaths from the virus, peaking at 1,438 on April 15.
Report by Geert De Clercq, Franklin Paul Edition, Kirsten Donovan
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