France to extend lockdown beyond April 15 to contain coronavirus

By Pepi Sappal • Published: 09 Apr 2020 • 2:58

French President Emmanuel Macron will address the nation and provide more details on the extension on Monday 13th April, in the evening. Credit: Twitter.

THE Elysée Palace has announced that France will extend the country’s lockdown beyond April 15 for a second time to contain the spread of the coronavirus (Covid-19).

The French presidential palace said that President Emmanuel Macron will address the nation and provide more details on the extension on Monday April 13, in the evening. “Until then, Macron plans to speak to a large number of public and private companies, French, European and International, on what is at stake concerning Covid-19 and prepare the decisions that will be announced on Monday to the French,” according to the Palace statement.

The announcement comes as the country’s death toll from the disease soars to 10,869. France also now has around 7,148 people in intensive care at its hospitals across the country, an increase of 17 from the day earlier.

According to Jérôme Salomon, Head of the Public Health Authority, “The nationwide lockdown, which began on March 17, has helped slow down the virus’s spread.” He said that he hopes that France will see a “flattening in its curve of cases in coming days,” but stressed that this plateau is still “at a very high level.”