In France, the number of corona infections continues to rise significantly. With the new measures against the pandemic, the government is taking a different approach this time than in spring.
Update, Tuesday, September 15th, 2020, 8:40 a.m.: Marseille is the third largest city in France, with around 1.7 million people living in the metropolitan area. It got off relatively lightly during the crisis in the spring, unlike the area bordering Germany and the greater Paris area.
But now it is the largest French corona hotspot before Bordeaux: Marseille's public hospitals have increased the number of emergency beds for corona patients to 139, and there are 32 ventilation places. A large part is already occupied. The crucial question is "how big the second wave will be," say doctors. "Unlike in March, we cannot rely on a curfew to slow the increase."
Young people in particular are disregarding the rules of hygiene. Television images of hundreds of fans of the first division football team Olympique Marseille, who were celebrating the victory over Paris at the old port - without safety distances, some without protective masks and unmolested by the police, caused heads to shake.
The French authorities also have major problems tracking the infection routes. With more than a million corona tests per week, France's laboratories are overloaded, and those tested have to wait up to a week for their results. Many infected people do not comply with the quarantine for fear of losing their job. In order to achieve greater acceptance, the government has just reduced the isolation period from 14 to seven days.
Unlike Germany, France also keeps its borders with the EU open. There is not even a travel warning for the particularly affected neighbor Spain.
In Marseille and Bordeaux, the authorities have now pulled the emergency brake: meetings with more than a thousand participants are prohibited, visits to old people's homes are restricted. It is unclear whether the new measures are sufficient. Many already fear a new lockdown.
WHO: "It's going to get tougher"
Update from Monday, September 14th, 2020, 12:50 p.m.: The World Health Organization (WHO) expects an increase in daily corona deaths in Europe in October and November. "It's going to get tougher," WHO regional director for Europe Hans Kluge told AFP on Monday. The number of new corona infections in Europe is currently increasing, but the number of daily deaths has so far remained relatively stable.
The world doesn't want to hear bad news like this right now, "and I understand that," said Kluge. "But in October and November we will see an increase in mortality." The Copenhagen-based WHO official warned against placing too high expectations on vaccines. "I hear all the time, 'The vaccine will be the end of the pandemic'. Of course not!” said the Belgian.
France: lost track of new corona infections
+++ 11.40 a.m .: The corona situation in France has recently deteriorated significantly. The newspaper "Le Journal du Dimanche" has now published an appeal by six prominent doctors to keep contact with families and friends to a minimum and to avoid private meetings. "Little by little we are losing track of the new infections," wrote the six - including infectious disease specialist Anne-Claude Crémieux and professor of public health Philippe Amouyel. The smaller a room is, the more people are in it and the poorer the ventilation, the greater the risk of infection, they warned.
After the outbreak of the pandemic, France was one of the hardest hit countries in Europe with 30,910 deaths so far. The number of infections with the Sars-CoV-2 coronavirus has risen sharply in the popular holiday destination in recent weeks. It had previously been relatively low for much of the summer after a 55-day lockdown that lasted from March 17th to May 11th.
France: New record of infections within 24 hours since the tests were expanded
Update from Sunday, September 13th, 2020, 7.25 a.m .: In France, more than 10,000 new infections with the corona virus were recorded within 24 hours . As announced by the Ministry of Health in Paris, 10,561 new cases of coronavirus infection have been recorded since the previous day - a new record since the tests for the new virus were significantly expanded.
A further 17 deaths in hospitals as a result of coronavirus infection were also counted as of Saturday night, bringing the official total death toll in the country to 30,910.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Jean Castex ended the voluntary quarantine he imposed after contact with infected Tour de France director Christian Prudhomme. The government announced that a second corona test at Castex was also negative.
France relies on local measures: Corona infection numbers are reaching new highs
Update from Saturday, September 12th, 2020, 7.10 a.m.: The corona numbers in France have been at a high level since the end of August. In the past few days, almost 10,000 new infections have been recorded within 24 hours. On Friday there were 9,400. Prime Minister Jean Castex spoke of a “significant deterioration” in the situation. The corona warning value of 50 new infections per 100,000 inhabitants within one week is significantly exceeded on the national average with 72 cases. The situation in the port city of Marseille is particularly critical with 275 cases. In Paris there are currently 144 cases. Germany is currently warning against travel to seven French mainland regions, in addition to Paris and the Côte d'Azur, the southwest has recently been added.
In view of the massive increase in the number of corona infections, France wants to do everything possible to avoid a new nationwide lockdown. After a crisis meeting chaired by President Emmanuel Macron, Castex said there would be no “general exit restrictions” for the time being. According to the head of government, corona tests for people with symptoms or health workers should also have priority. In many places, those who want to test have to put up with long queues, and the results are often only available after several days. Castex also promised 2,000 new jobs for overburdened health authorities and health insurance companies.
Quarantine duration has been reduced to 7 days. This is intended to promote better acceptance. According to the Ministry of Health, many French people are not observing self-isolation. "It is imperative that everyone strictly adheres to this period of isolation, which will be subject to control," the PM warned. Castex spoke in a televised address without an audience. The prime minister is in voluntary quarantine himself because he was in contact with the infected director of the Tour de France, Christian Prudhomme. A first corona test at Castex was negative.
The head of the emergency department at the Georges Pompidou hospital in Paris, Philippe Juvin, expressed the fear on the broadcaster BFM-TV that "in two to three weeks 50 percent of the ventilation places could be occupied again" in risk areas. With more than 30,800 fatalities, France is one of the hardest hit countries in Europe.
Corona in France: Almost 10,000 new infections per day - now 42 departments are at risk
+++ 6.25 p.m .: In view of the increasing corona numbers, French Prime Minister Jean Castex has asked regions that have been particularly hard hit to take new measures by Monday to present in the fight against the virus. These include the cities of Marseille and Bordeaux as well as the overseas territory of Guadeloupe, as Castex said on Friday evening after a Defense Council meeting in Paris. At the same time, he warned that distance rules should be observed. “The virus is circulating more and more in France. Tomorrow depends on you, on us.”
Many French people had expected the imposition of stricter rules - such as regional exit restrictions or restaurant closures. Instead, Castex appealed primarily to his compatriots' sense of responsibility.
Castex announced that the quarantine period for corona contacts will be reduced from 14 to 7 days. In addition, a total of 42 departments are now considered risk areas. Previously there were almost 30. This means that the local authorities have the opportunity to take measures that restrict public life. These so-called red zones include the greater Paris area and large parts of the Mediterranean coast.
+++ 1.30 p.m .: In view of a record number of new corona infections, stricter measures to contain the pandemic are emerging in France. The cabinet discussed this on Friday at a crisis meeting chaired by President Emmanuel Macron. Shortly before, the national health authority had confirmed a new high of almost 10,000 new corona cases within one day - almost seven times as many as in Germany. New exit restrictions are the strictest means, but there is resistance to this.
Exit restrictions are imminent - almost 10,000 new infections every day
Update from Friday, September 11th, 2020, 6.40 a.m.: Before the French government advises on further tightening of the corona measures, the highest increase of almost 10,000 new infections were recorded within 24 hours. As the Ministry of Health in Paris announced on Thursday, 9843 new cases of coronavirus infection have been recorded since the previous day. This is the highest number in France since the pandemic began.
Another 19 deaths were also counted as a result of the coronavirus infection, bringing the official total death toll in the country to 30,813. France is one of the countries in Europe most affected by the pandemic. A total of around 390,000 cases of infection have been recorded there so far. Tests for the virus have recently been significantly expanded. In one million tests, 48,542 infections were found within a week.
France is advising on tightening the corona measures
+++ 9:30 p.m.: On Friday (09/11/2020) the French government is advising on a further tightening of the corona measures. The scientific advisory board is urging the government to act because of the number of infections, which has been increasing for weeks. President Emmanuel Macron warned of “panic” before the special session.
Most recently, the French health authorities had confirmed more than 8,500 new infections within 24 hours, a good four times as many as in Germany. The strictest means of containing the virus are exit restrictions, as they were in force in France between March and May. Masks are already compulsory in companies and most schools in the country. In Paris and other major French cities, mouth and nose protection must also be worn outdoors.
+++ 7:58 p.m .: France’s economy is slowly recovering. After several corona restrictions were lifted, the gross domestic product is expected to increase by about 17 percent in the coming quarter, reports the news site France 24, which refers to figures from the National Institute for Statistics and Economic Studies (INSEE). The easing of measures is said to have contributed to the economic recovery in several sectors. However, the aviation, culture and entertainment industries continue to suffer from the corona pandemic.
Corona in France: the government wants to work with Germany on economic stimulus packages
The French and German governments want to work more closely together on economic stimulus programs during the Corona crisis, as reported by "Bayerischer Rundfunk". This was decided by Federal Minister of Economics Peter Altmaier and his French counterpart Bruno Le Maire at a meeting in Berlin. The focus is on green industrial and energy projects that are intended to transform Europe's economy in the long term.
Corona in France: government declares other departments to be risk areas
Update from Thursday, September 10th, 2020, 12:35 p.m .: The government in France has declared seven departments to be new corona risk areas. This means that 28 of the approximately 100 departments are in “red zones”. In addition to the four departments of Nord, Bas-Rhin, Seine-Maritime and Côte-d'Or, the administrative districts on the Mediterranean island of Corsica and the overseas department on the island of La Réunion in the Indian Ocean are also affected. Germany has issued a travel warning for the Paris region as well as the Côte d'Azur and Provence.
+++ 10:25 p.m .: The corona virus continues to cause problems for France. According to the Ministry of Health, 8,577 people were infected with the corona virus within 24 hours, which is the second largest increase since the beginning of the crisis in the country. A total of 344,101 people have been shown to have contracted the corona virus in France. The death toll increased by 30 to 30,794.
Corona crisis: situation in France "worrying"
+++ 4 p.m.: France's leading corona experts are urging action in view of the massive increase in the number of infections. The government had to make “a number of difficult decisions” to protect risk groups, emphasized the chairman of the scientific advisory board, Jean-François Delfraissy. He called the situation in the country "worrying".
France's President Emmanuel Macron has called a special cabinet meeting for Friday to discuss tightened corona measures. Delfraissy said the situation in France was "not far" from that in Spain.
The strictest means are exit restrictions, as they were in force in France between March and May. The government has been reluctant to do so because of the economic consequences.
Delfraissy referred in particular to the difficult situation in the region around Provence and the Côte d'Azur. Germany has issued a travel warning for the region, as well as for the greater Paris area. The increase in corona numbers in the port city of Marseille is particularly critical. The hospitals there announced an increase in intensive care beds, as most places for artificial ventilation are already occupied.
Shortening of the quarantine in France and Italy?
Update Wednesday, September 9th, 2020, 11.20 a.m.: After France's considerations on shortening the quarantine period for people infected with corona, Italy is also discussing such a measure. "If we were to shorten the quarantine, the social and economic costs would also be reduced," said Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte. The shortening of the quarantine from 14 to seven days is an “important perspective”.
French Health Minister Olivier Véran said on Tuesday that this option would be examined in France. A decision is to be made in Paris on Friday.
Long quarantine is exaggerated
Lungologist Luca Richeldi, member of the scientific advisory board of the Italian Ministry of Health, said: "This is a decision that will very likely also be considered in Italy, above all , because it would have a major impact on simplifying the quarantine measures.”
According to numerous Italian experts, shortening the quarantine period in the case of a corona infection without symptoms makes sense. "Recommending 14 days of isolation made sense at the beginning of the pandemic and was right because we knew nothing about this virus," said Mario Clerici, professor of immunology at the University of Milan, the "Corriere della Sera" (Wednesday). "Today we know the virus much better and such a long quarantine is excessive, especially for those who are infected without symptoms."
Corona: Second wave - how serious is the situation in France, Italy and Spain?
Paris - Italy, Spain, France - they were the focal points of the Corona crisis in spring, which was one of the most severe of countries in Europe affected by the pandemic. Daily new infections in the four-digit range, numerous severe courses and tens of thousands of deaths shaped the countries, Italy above all. Gradually, through sometimes strict regulations and lockdowns, they got the infection process under control to such an extent that the curves flattened out.
But with increasing easing and the start of the holiday season, France, Spain and Italy are facing a second corona wave. The situation is getting worse in Madrid and there are also more new infections in Italy than there have been in months. Hotspots have been popping up again all over Spain since the beginning of July, and the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) now classifies the whole country as a risk area. In France, too, the number of new infections every day has been increasing rapidly since mid-July. The Île-de-France regions including the capital Paris and Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur have been considered risk areas since August 24th. But why are the numbers in these countries soaring again?
Corona in Europe: increase in Germany not as strong as in France
It should be noted here, as well as when assessing the situation in Germany, that the number of tests has increased enormously and the age distribution another is. What do the values mean - and how long will Germany be relatively spared? According to the Berlin virologist Christian Drosten, it is hardly possible to forecast the limit up to which the number of new corona infections in Germany can still be controlled and when mass spread will begin. "It's very difficult to estimate when this will happen," he recently said in the NDR podcast. It is clear that there could be a sudden effect, a threshold effect.
However, factors such as average family size and the mobility of the population influenced events differently from country to country. "And that's why I can't say now: This is the threshold." In France, for example, this limit may have been exceeded. But why there and not in Germany? It is conceivable that the infection rate in this country was pushed to a lower basic level over the summer, according to Drosten.
Corona in France, Spain and Italy: many infections among young people
In France, with its approximately 67 million inhabitants, there are currently around 6000 new infections every day. The previous maximum was reported at the end of March with around 7,500 newly recorded cases within one day. However, as in many countries, the number of tests has also increased immensely: while fewer than 40,000 people were tested within a week at the end of May, there were more than 850,000 in the week from August 24th to 30th. The rate of positive tests was recently a good four percent.
As in other European countries, young adults are currently becoming increasingly infected with Sars-CoV-2 in France, according to the authorities, mainly at celebrations and vacation trips. Therefore, the number of patients treated in the hospital is comparatively low: as of Monday (September 7th, 2020) 4907 people were in the hospital because of Covid-19, 537 of them in an intensive care unit.
The situation is very similar in Italy: The average age of the infected people recorded in Italy was last 32 years (24th to 30th August). On March 24, it was 63 years. As of Monday (September 7th, 2020) only 1719 infected people were treated in the hospital, 142 in the intensive care unit. In March (reference date March 21, 2020) 17,708 people with corona symptoms were in the hospital - almost half of the known infected people at the time. 2857 were treated in the intensive care unit.
Corona in France, Spain and Italy: Many cases thanks to many tests
Here too, the number of tests rose sharply: from around 195,600 in the week of March 23rd to 29th - this week there were It is the largest increase in new infections in Italy - to around 633,000 (31 August to 6 September). Around 1.5 percent are currently positive - at the time of the maximum in spring it was almost 20 percent.
In Spain, with its almost 47 million inhabitants, the situation in the Madrid region is the main cause for concern. Since the end of June, the number of new infections nationwide has been increasing again, with more than 4,500 new infections reported within 24 hours at the beginning of the month. The previous maximum was 9222 cases on March 31st. According to the Ministry of Health, Spain is currently doing almost 50,000 tests a day; at the end of March it was around 200,000 a week.
Even if the number of daily new infections with the corona virus in Germany is not currently increasing to the same extent as in France, Spain or Italy, this could change quickly. "What is happening now in younger people will happen in a few weeks in older people," Anders Johansson, an infectious disease expert at Umeå University in Sweden, recently warned. In its situation reports, the RKI also warns that it is necessary to prevent older and particularly vulnerable population groups from becoming ill again, as was the case at the beginning of the pandemic. (ial with dpa)
The Bavarian ski resort of Garmisch-Partenkirchen is seeing a sharp increase in new infections and is becoming a hotspot. A 26-year-old superspreader is probably responsible for the corona outbreak.
Heading list picture: © dpa/Arne Dedert
