France Sets New Record For Coronavirus Cases

Coronavirus cases in France continue to rise with the country setting new highs for positive tests almost daily.

France surpassed 10,000 cases for the first time Saturday as health authorities announced 10,561 confirmed cases. The country had previously set its own record Thursday with 9,843 reported cases.

The French health ministry reported it is investigating 772 clusters, according to Reuters.

France has seen a resurgence of coronavirus cases months after flattening the curve. The nation had previously peaked with 7,578 reported cases on March 31. It was down to a seven-day average of 1,254 daily cases on April 30, according to data compiled by The New York Times.

From May 7 to July 12, France only reported more than 1,000 daily cases twice. Cases have been steadily rising since mid-July, going from a seven-day daily average of 1,025 cases on July 30 to an average of 5,006 cases per day on Aug. 30.

Coronavirus deaths in France have remained low compared to the start of the pandemic.

The country reported a high 2,004 deaths on April 3 and a seven-day average of at least 500 deaths for 22 straight days. France reported 80 new deaths Friday, bringing up the seven-day average to 33 deaths per day.

French Prime Minister Jean Castex said Friday the government would not institute another nation-wide lockdown similar to the one that was imposed in March and not relaxed until May.

“The virus is with us for several more months and we must manage to live with it without letting ourselves get drawn once again into a narrative of nationwide lockdown,” Castex said.

There have been nearly 31,000 total coronavirus deaths in France.