Infections disease expert warns France has 'lost control' of coronavirus pandemic

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PARIS – Virus patients now occupy more than half of France’s intensive care units, and some doctors are urging tougher restrictions after another record jump in confirmed infections.

Dr. Jean-Francois Delfraissy, head of the government’s virus advisory body, expressed surprise Monday at the “brutality” of the rise, after more than 52,000 new cases were reported Sunday.

A man wearing a mask walks in the Montmartre district of Paris, Sunday, Oct.25, 2020. (AP Photo/Lewis Joly)

Speaking on RTL radio, he floated the idea of local lockdowns or extending France’s 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfews, which currently cover about half of the country and more than two-thirds of its people.

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The number of people hospitalized in France with the virus has climbed sharply in recent weeks, putting renewed pressure on ICUs. COVID patients now fill more than two-thirds of the ICUs in the Paris region.

People wearing masks, walk in the Invalides district of Paris, Sunday, Oct.25, 2020. (AP Photo/Lewis Joly)

Dr. Eric Caumes, head of the infectious and tropical diseases department at Paris’ Pitie-Salpetriere Hospital, told broadcaster Franceinfo on Monday that “we have lost control of the epidemic, though it doesn’t date from yesterday.”

France has been among countries hardest-hit by the pandemic, reporting 34,761 virus-related deaths. It is currently registering more than 340 positive cases per 100,000 people nationwide each week.

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Commuters wearing face masks walk on the platform, of a Paris subway, Sunday Oct.25, 2020. (AP Photo/Lewis Joly)

Delfraissy warns that this latest wave of the virus could be “stronger than the first” and is spreading all around Europe.