The number of people in France who have died from the coronavirus has now risen above 10,000. Latest figures show 10,238 people died from the virus since 1 March. In the past 24 hours, 607 deaths have been recorded in hospitals.
A further 820 deaths were recorded in nursing homes. However, they may have taken place over several days and are only now being added to the toll. France has been under lockdown since 15 March, with fines for violations, reports BBC.
On Tuesday, Paris said it would ban people from exercising outdoors between 10:00 and 19:00 local time.
The new restriction came after a sunny weekend marked by large groups of people running and walking in the city’s parks, despite police controls.
According to Wikipedia, The 2019–20 coronavirus pandemic reached France on 24 January 2020, when the first COVID-19 case in Europe and France was confirmed in Bordeaux. The first five cases were all individuals who had recently arrived or returned from China.[2][3] On 28 January, a Chinese tourist carrying the virus was admitted to hospital in Paris and died on 14 February, making it the first death in France and anywhere outside Asia.
One key event in the spread of the disease across Metropolitan France as well as its overseas territories was the annual assembly of the Christian Open Door Church between 17 and 24 February in Mulhouse which was attended by about 2,500 people, at least half of whom are believed to have contracted the virus.
On 12 March, French President Emmanuel Macron announced on public television that all schools and all universities would close from Monday 16 March until further notice. The next day, the prime minister Édouard Philippe banned gatherings of more than 100 people, not including public transportation. The following day, the prime minister ordered the closure of all non-essential public places, including restaurants, cafés, cinemas, and discothèques, effective at midnight. On 16 March, President Macron announced mandatory home confinement for 15 days starting at noon on 17 March. On 27 March, Prime Minister Édouard Philippe extended the lockdown until 15 April.
As of 6 April, France has reported 109,068 confirmed cases, 10,328 deaths, and 17,250 recoveries, making it the sixth highest country by number of confirmed cases. France also counts nursing home deaths. As of 6 April France has reported 23,620 confirmed or suspected cases in retirement home.
