Thu 15 October 2020:
Anyone found to be outdoors during the curfew without special authorisation would face a fine of 135 euros ($159), Macron said
French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday announced that nightly curfew will be imposed in Paris and other cities, as a state of emergency has been declared in the country to stem the spread of the novel coronavirus.
In a televised interview on Wednesday, Macron said residents of those cities would not be allowed outdoors between 9pm (19:00 GMT) and 6am (04:00 GMT) from Saturday, for at least four weeks, except for essential reasons.
“We have to act. We need to put a brake on the spread of the virus,” Macron said, adding the measure would stop people visiting restaurants and private homes in the late evening and night.
He said new daily coronavirus cases must be brought down to “3,000 or 5,000” from current levels, which have reached up to almost 27,000.
In addition to Paris and its region, the measures are being imposed in Grenoble, Lille, Lyon, Marseille, Montpellier, Rouen, Saint-Etienne and Toulouse, Macron said.
“We won’t be leaving the restaurant after 9pm,” Macron said. “We won’t be partying with friends because we know that that’s where the contamination risk is greatest.”
France’s Health Ministry on Wednesday reported 22,591 new COVID-19 infections, with cases now totaling 779,063. The death toll in the country reached 33,037 as 104 new fatalities were reported over the past 24 hours.
As many as 6,033 people remain hospitalized, with 1,037 of them in intensive care.
Anyone found to be outdoors during the curfew without special authorisation would face a fine of 135 euros ($159), Macron said.
Authorities would also work with cultural businesses such as cinemas and theatres to try and find a way for them to continue functioning by changing their showtimes, he said.
Macron appealed to citizens to apply all hygienic measures even in private and among friends, including wearing masks at family gatherings.
