The coronavirus epidemic is starting to be considered by the authorities in France. To answer the questions of an increasingly worried population, the government set up, Tuesday, a telephone platform which is already crumbling under the calls, so that additional advisers had to be requisitioned.

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As the coronavirus continues to spread, the public remains increasingly concerned. Established on Tuesday, the government's telephone platform testifies to this. Wednesday, 26,000 calls were received, a record. So that Thursday, faced with an increasing number of calls, the advisers almost did not take off their afternoon helmets. Some were not even able to take a break, like Géraldine.

"As a preventive measure, we will ask you to stay at home for 14 days and to monitor your temperature twice a day," she advises her interlocutor, a man who has just returned from a stay in Singapore.

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From 50 to 120 advisers

Among the issues that cause concern: the behavior to adopt when returning from a risk zone, or even compensation in the event of absence from work if the employee is placed in solitary confinement. If the caller has a medical question, however, the operator will redirect him to 15.

If at the start of the cell, the system provided for the deployment of 50 advisers, all calls received in the past three days required the requisition of additional operators. "We strengthened the team on the Paris platform and we used our different platforms in the provinces," explains the manager of the telephone platform. "We went up to 90 or even 120 advisers."

At 3 p.m. on Thursday, 10,000 calls had already been received. The double could be reached by 9 p.m. The number - 0800 130 000 - should be dialed for information. In case of fever, cough, difficulty breathing after returning from a risk area, the authorities recommend dialing 15.