Covid-19 decline continues as France gets ready for life after lockdown

The number of coronavirus deaths in France rose to 24,376 Thursday as the country added another 289 names to its toll, with health authorities putting the number of confirmed Covid-19 cases at 129,581.

Worldwide there are more than 3.2 million cases of the coronavirus, with 229,000 fatalities as of 30 April, 2020. MAURIZIO DE ANGELIS/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY

In his daily assessment, director of health Jérôme Salomon said there had been 191 deaths in hospitals over the previous 24-hour period, and 98 deaths in medico-social centres, including retirement homes.

France currently has 26,283 coronavirus patients in hospital, with 4,019 in intensive care – which is 188 fewer than the day before, following a decline for the 22nd consecutive day.

[#COVID__19 Situation en #France au 30/04]
🦠 Cas : 129 581 (+ 1 139 en 24h)
🛌 Réanimations : 4 019 (- 188 en 24h)
❌ Décès : 24 376 (+ 289 en 24h)
🏡 Retours à domicile : 49 476 (+ 1 248 en 24h) pic.twitter.com/cvSXrsKUYn

— COVID — 19 - France (@FR_Covid_19) April 30, 2020

In the countdown to France’s gradual exit from lockdown on 11 May, the Health Ministry has released a colour-coded map that classifies the areas that will likely be ready to reopen, and those which are still too strained by the coronavirus.

Announcing the country’s deconfinement strategy to the parliament on Tuesday, Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said France’s lockdown easing would be made according to the evolution of the virus across the various regions.

Worldwide there are more than 3.2 million cases of the coronavirus, with 229,000 fatalities, according to figures from Johns Hopkins University in the United States.

Some 60,000 people have died in the US, followed by nearly 28,000 in Italy. The UK has now surpassed Spain’s 24,500 toll, registering 26,000 deaths.