Veran praised the efforts of the country’s health workers, whom he described as the “heroes of this fight”.
Workers wearing protective suits spray disinfectant (Photo: AFP)
France has reported its highest single-day death toll since the coronavirus pandemic started in the country, according to the Health Minister Olivier Veran.
Earlier on Monday, 833 deaths have been registered, including fatalities from hospitals and care homes that brought the country’s overall death toll to 8,911, third highest in the world behind Italy and Spain.
During a press conference, Veran said, “This is not over. Far from it. We are not at the end of the ascent of this epidemic”.
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“The path remains long and nothing is over”, he added.
The figures of those who died in nursing and care homes only started being included in the daily tallies on April 3, which had led to criticisms that officials were not disclosing the full extent of the outbreak.
According to the Johns Hopkins University, France has reported 98,984 coronavirus cases.
The fifth-highest in the world. The US has the largest number of confirmed infections at 368,241.
Veran praised the efforts of the country’s health workers, whom he described as the “heroes of this fight”.
France has been in lockdown since March 17 in a bid to slow the spread of the epidemic and officials have repeatedly warned it will take time for the measures to bear fruit.
Veran also insisted that the lockdown needs to remain in place for the time being.
Globally, there have been over 13.4 lakh confirmed cases of COVID-19. At least 74,600 people have died so far.
The US has the highest number of confirmed cases followed by Spain, Italy, Germany and France. The outbreak is having a major impact on global economy and the stock market.
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