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France now has 127 deaths and 5,423 proven cases of coronavirus, we learned on Sunday, the day that saw the strongest increase in terms of both deaths and the number of infections. The transition to stage 3 of the epidemic was decided on Saturday, and it is accompanied by drastic measures, starting with the closure of all businesses deemed "not essential" to the life of the French. And as the Covid-19 continues to progress, measures could be further strengthened this week. With a burning question in the aftermath of the first round of municipal elections: will the second take place?
Information to remember
- Record rose to 127 dead and more than 5,400 cases in France on Sunday, a record
- The government urged the French on Sunday to comply more with the instructions
- Edouard Philippe will bring together "at the beginning of the week" experts to settle the question of the 2nd round of municipal elections
Record hike day Sunday
The government urged the French on Sunday to comply with the instructions to curb the spread of the coronavirus after an unprecedented rise in deaths and contamination in the country, where most public places were closed and the ballot boxes were shunned in the first round of municipal elections. According to a statement published Sunday evening by the national public health agency, Santé Publique France, the balance sheet of the epidemic climbed Sunday to 127 dead and 5,423 confirmed cases, or 36 dead and more than 900 additional cases in 24 hours. More than 400 people are hospitalized in serious condition.
"Severe forms are reported in elderly or frail people but also in adults without previous pathologies", warns the Directorate General of Health. This is the largest daily increase in cases and deaths since the appearance of the virus in France, which officially entered Saturday in stage 3 of the epidemic.
The Minister of Health, Olivier Véran, also called on the entire population to be aware of the gravity of the situation and to limit social interactions, while many French people, especially in Paris, took advantage of the sun on Sunday spring to hurry in public parks and gardens. "We are all actors in health, the decisions we make on a daily basis, the outing that we are going to cancel, the family evening or the family meal that we are not going to do: all of this is crucial to protect the health of French. The virus is invisible, it circulates quickly and it threatens the lives of people. I urge the French to respect social restriction measures, "he said on France 2.
"We must all together show more discipline in the application of these measures, what we are going to do is simply avoid gathering as much as possible, limit friendly and family meetings, only use public transport to go to work, and only if physical presence at work is essential ", also urged Prime Minister Édouard Philippe during a television intervention.
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"Non-essential" shops closed
To respond to the emergency, Prime Minister Edouard Philippe announced this weekend the closure of all "places welcoming the public not essential to the life of the Nation", closings entered into force on Sunday which are added to the ban on gatherings of more than 100 people. Cinemas, bars, nightclubs, restaurants, shopping centers, libraries, performance halls, museums and sports establishments are closed until April 15. Bars and restaurants can, however, "maintain their take-out and delivery activities".
The government has also decided to drastically reduce long-distance transport, with rail traffic soon to be halved and only "a few international flights". Local transport will however be spared. France will also strengthen from Monday morning controls on its border with Germany, announced the Minister of the Interior, without however closing it partially as decided by Germany.
Nurseries, schools and universities close on Monday. Only "children under the age of sixteen of the personnel essential to the management of the health crisis" will be admitted to educational establishments, the others will benefit from distance education, at least until the spring holidays.
For businesses, the minister also announced a relaxation of the "rules for recruitment, night work, overtime". Parents of children under the age of 16 who cannot telecommute "are automatically entitled" to sick leave and the State will "fully" pay for the partial unemployment demanded by the penalized enterprises.
Will the second round of municipal elections take place?
Despite the sanitary measures in the polling stations, the participation in the first round of the municipal elections melted at an unprecedented level, around 45%. A historic collapse that feeds growing questions about the maintenance of the second with many elected officials who ask for its postponement. Edouard Philippe announced Sunday that he would bring together "again at the beginning of the week" the scientific experts and "the representatives of the political forces" in order to make a decision on the second round of the municipal elections.
If the first round "went perfectly (...) the high rate of abstention that we record, however, testifies to the growing concern of our fellow citizens in the face of the epidemic which strikes us," added the Prime Minister, while some politicians are calling for a postponement of the second round.
2,000 dead in Europe
Elsewhere, the toll continues to grow. Italy registered Sunday 368 new deaths in 24 hours, which increases the number of deaths to 1,809 in the country, the most affected in Europe. In total, the pandemic has killed more than 2,000 people in Europe. Around the world, we barricade ourselves before the pandemic, which has killed more than 6,000 people worldwide. Germany, for example, announced the closure from Monday of three of its borders, including that with France.