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HEALTH

Coronavirus LATEST: France’s elderly urged to stay home as Disneyland Paris closes gates

The coronavirus outbreak continued to have a huge impact on life in France on Friday as President Emmanuel Macron announced schools are to close and urged over-70s to remain in doors. Disneyland Paris also closed its gates.

Published: 5 March 2020 20:39 CET
Updated: 13 March 2020 09:02 CET
Coronavirus LATEST: France's elderly urged to stay home as Disneyland Paris closes gates
French President Emmanuel Macron addressed the country on Thursday. Photo: AFP

 As the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in France topped 2,870 on Thursday and the death toll reached 61, French President Emmanuel Macron announced new measures to contain the spread in the country. 

“I want to be very clear with you tonight,” Macron said during a televised speech on Thursday evening. “We are only at the beginning of the epidemic.” 

The president urged anyone aged over 70, disabled or in poor health to stay at home and limit social contact as much as possible. Starting Monday, all schools in the country will close their doors for an unspecified amount of time.

“The education sector has entered stage 3,” education minister Jean-Michel Blanquer confirmed on Friday morning.

Just 24 hours earlier Blanquer had said that the government “never envisaged” closing all of the country's schools, because it would be “counter-productive” to “paralyse a large part of the country.” 

While President had not said whether the country had entered stage 3 – a full-blown epidemic status – although he had previously said that France was very close to such a state.

 “We have anticipated, we are prepared and we have excellent staff,” Macron said as he visited a hospital earlier this week.

READ ALSO What to expect when France declares a coronavirus epidemic

On Friday, the popular tourist park Disneyland Paris announced that it would temporarily shut its gates, after three of its staff tested positive for the coronavirus this week. The decision came after the park had previously said it would remain open to visitors but with “temporary adjustments” to its cancellation policy for anyone wishing to cancel reservation at the Disney Hotel through April 15th.

The country also suspended all matches in its top football divisions. The country's professional rugby league also announced a suspension.

France is also included in the list of Schengen zone countries which the USA has banned flights from. Many aspects of the ban, announced by US president Donald Trump on Wednesday night, are still unclear but it seems that American citizens are not covered, nor are flights via the UK.

Health minister Olivier Véran said on Wednesday night that 105 people were in hospital in a serious condition.

French Health Director Jérôme Salomon has previously stressed that so far, 98 percent of people diagnosed with coronavirus in France make a full recovery.

France had already enacted restrictions on gatherings of more than 1,000 people and the 10 'cluster' zones where the majority of cases have been diagnosed have strict restrictions on any type of public gathering.

However the first round of the municipal elections will go ahead as planned on Sunday, President Macron confirmed on Thursday evening.

“There is nothing to suggest the French shouldn't go to the polls,” he said, refuting claims that the elections could not be held because people would abstain from voting out of fear of the virus.
 

Areas now considered 'cluster' zones are;  Mulhouse in the Haut-Rhin département in eastern France, Oise in the north east, Morbihan in Brittany, two areas in Haute-Savoie in the Alps, the entire island of Corsica,the Aude département in southern France, Calvados in Normandy and eastern Montpellier.

A tenth cluster was a tour group that had travelled to Egypt, with 13 people testing positive for the infection.

Schools in the Oise and Haut-Rhin département have been closed for a week, and the island of Corsica followed suit as well as 16 communes in the eastern part of Montpellier and the surrounding Hérault département.

Corsica, which did not initially record any cases, has now confirmed 51 cases and a cluster around the capital Ajaccio. On Thursday morning the prefect of Corsica announced that all gatherings of more than 50 people would be banned until April 15th.

MAP: Which regions of France are most affected by coronavirus?


President Emmanuel Macron visiting the Necker hospital in Paris on Tuesday. Photo: AFP

French authorities have been clear since the outbreak first began in Italy that a full epidemic in France is only a matter of time, and have concentrated their efforts on delaying the peak of the spread of the virus.

Macron on Tuesday expressed his gratitude to the “wonderful and courageous” medical services and asked that people continue to “show solidarity” to the most vulnerable in society by following health advice including washing hands and self isolating if necessary.

Five French MPs plus Culture Minister Franck Riester and two staff members at the parliament have also tested positive for coronavirus. The Assemblée Nationale is already on a scheduled break over the period of the municipal elections.

Riester has contracted the novel coronavirus and is staying in his Paris home but is “doing fine”, his office said Monday.

“The minister tested positive today,” after displaying symptoms, the ministry said.

READ ALSO Coronavirus in France – how worried should you be?

French health minister Olivier Véran. Photo: AFP

All gatherings of more than 1,000 have been banned, a step that will have a huge impact on cultural life in France with numerous concert halls and venues across the country having to postpone upcoming concerts.

Public transport is not covered by the ban, nor are demonstrations.

France had already passed a decree that anyone who is following government advice to self isolate, or whose children are unable to go to school because of coronavirus, is entitled to paid sick leave.

READ ALSO Should I cancel my trip to France because of coronavirus

President Emmanuel Macron had said people should “protect the most vulnerable” and stop visiting older people during the outbreak.

 

France has also banned visits to the country's retirement homes.

Concerts including performances at the Paris Opéra have been cancelled but Paris' largest tourist attractions including the Louvre and Musée d'Orsay remain open, albeit with limits in place on the number of visitors.

Macron has cancelled his normal schedule to deal with the outbreak (and not, the Elysée Palace rushed to reassure people, because he has coronavirus himself).

French ministers have warned against all non-essential travel – especially outside the EU – and advised people in France to stop shaking hands and doing la bise (greeting with a kiss on each cheek) in an attempt to control the infection.

READ ALSO: Bise blues – How the French are coping with the coronavirus kissing ban

A man wearing a protective mask shops in the market of Crepy-in-Valois before its evacuation following the outbreak of COVID-19, caused by the novel coronavirus. Photo: AFP 

The government has requisitioned the country's stocks of masks to distribute to health professionals and people self isolating, in a bid to stop people panic buying and creating shortages for those who need them.

Health minister Véran has said “masks are indispensable” in hospitals, but “pointless” for anyone who is not themselves either a health worker or contaminated by the virus. 

Fears of catching the virus have sparked a run on masks as well as sanitising hand gel in France, leading some stores and online retailers to hike prices.

The price of hand sanitser was capped last week by government decree a €3 per 100ml.

READ ALSO The everyday precautions you can take to stay safe in France

French police officers evacuate the market of Crepy-in-Valois on March 1, 2020, following the outbreak of COVID-19, caused by the novel coronavirus. Photo: AFP

 

Member comments

  2. Prime Minister Edouard Philippe announced on Friday night that all schools, colleges and nurseries
    Why not churches?

  4. There is no panic in France from what I have seen. The French authorities have demonstrated good leadership when it comes to dealing with this outbreak and life is going on pretty much as normal here (we are on the Finistere, Morbihan border), especially when compared to the UK/Australia/USA.

  6. Chez Moi. Total lock down or at the very least reduce public gatherings to 100 or less curtail transport between countries to commercial freight only.

  7. Huh, boggy? France has no such down, yet the reported cases are VERY low compared to Italy. The only problem I see that is idiot in the white house. As usual.

  8. Chez Moi, Americans living in France and totality agree about the idiot living in the White House.

  9. More unnecessary panic!
    GET REAL!
    Someone, please, get that f——g cretin out of the white house.
    This latest travel ban is so HIM – CLUELESS!

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HEALTH

How serious is the threat from dengue fever in France?

As tiger mosquitoes are now present in over 80 percent of mainland France, health authorities are worried that local transmission of tropical diseases, like dengue fever, will increase.

Published: 14 June 2024 15:15 CEST
How serious is the threat from dengue fever in France?

As of January 2024, tiger mosquitoes – known for their ability to carry diseases such as dengue, chikungunya and Zika virus – had been detected in 78 of France’s 96 mainland départements, including the Paris region.

This has left public health authorities concerned about the spread of dengue fever in France, particularly this summer as large crowds are expected amid the Olympic Games.

READ MORE: MAP: Tiger mosquitoes reach northern France

How common is dengue fever in France?

In the first four months of 2024, 1,679 cases of dengue fever were identified in mainland France, a number that is 13 times higher than the same period last year, Le Parisien reported.

Crucially, however, none of these are believed to have been contracted in mainland France – they were all reported among patients who had recently travelled from the tropical regions where dengue fever is common.

The majority of cases were from people who had visited the Caribbean islands of Martinique and Guadeloupe – where the disease is endemic.

These islands are for administrative purposes part of France – so often show up in French health data – but they are roughly 7,000km away from Paris.

So far, there have not been any indigenous cases (autochtone – or people infected on mainland French soil) yet this year.

Local transmission of the disease remains relatively rare. In 2023, nine separate outbreaks of indigenous dengue transmission were identified, one of which occurred in the Paris region. These led to 45 cases of local transmission (in mainland France).

Most were in southern France – in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur, Occitanie and Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes regions – though one outbreak occurred in the Paris region, according to French public health authorities.

This is less than 2022, which was a notable year with 66 total cases of indigenous dengue fever were recorded. In comparison, between 2010 and 2021, only 48 cases (total) were recorded.

What to expect for 2024

Experts believe that the number of cases in France, including indigenous ones, will grow this year, as tiger mosquitoes now occupy more territory in mainland France.

On top of that, the number of cases has increased significantly in Martinique and Guadeloupe.

“What we see in France is a mirror image of what is happening in the French Caribbean, and more widely in Latin America and the rest of the Caribbean, where dengue fever has been circulating since the start of the year at unprecedented levels”, the head of Santé Publique France, Dr Caroline Semaille, said during a press conference.

The Olympic Games will also bring an influx of tourists from all over the world, and weather conditions are expected to be conducive to mosquitoes – a year with a lot of rainfall, and potentially high temperatures. 

What is dengue fever?

The disease is spread to people from bites by infected mosquitoes.

The most common symptoms are high fever, chills, abdominal, joint and muscle pains, and vomiting. It can also cause a skin rash that resembles measles, according to France’s Institut Pasteur.

Symptoms usually begin three to 14 days (with an average of four to seven) after being bitten.

However people are asymptomatic in 50 to 90 percent of cases (depending on the epidemic), which can make monitoring difficult.

At-risk groups include the immunocompromised, children and the elderly, who are more likely to suffer from severe forms of the disease.

Deaths from the disease are very rare, occurring in around 0.01 percent of all cases, almost all in countries that have poor healthcare systems.

How can I avoid tiger mosquitoes?

Female tiger mosquitoes lay their eggs in water, and they can lay several hundred eggs at once. Therefore try to avoid having any standing water outside your home and be aware of the items that might collect rainwater.

This includes regularly emptying vases, flower pots, as well as watering cans and pots. If you want to collect rainwater, you could cover water butts with mosquito nets or fabric to keep the mosquitoes from getting inside.

READ ALSO 5 plants that (allegedly) repel mosquitoes

You can also keep your gutters clean – this helps to keep the water flowing when it rains, and it avoids any stagnant pools from building up.

To protect yourself, try to wear long, loose and light-coloured clothing, in addition to insect repellent. You might also consider wearing a mosquito net head gear.

The main difference between tiger mosquitoes and other species would be getting a bite during the day, and the fact that tiger mosquitoes are likely to bite several times. You can tell for sure if it was a tiger mosquito by seeing the insect itself. They are also silent.

There is no immediate cause for alarm if you are bitten, in almost all cases the bites are just itchy and annoying. In very rare cases, tropical diseases can be spread by the mosquitoes – seek medical help if you develop a high fever and rash.

READ MORE: How to prevent the spread of tiger mosquitoes in France

What do tiger mosquitoes look like?

They are very small, about 5 mm, and they have a highly contrasting colour, with black and white stripes on their body and legs.

If you believe you have spotted a tiger mosquito, you can report it to public health authorities online.

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