People, wearing a protective face mask, walk on the Promenade des Anglais, after France reopened its beaches to the public, in Nice, France, on May 16, 2020. (File photo: Reuters)

Coronavirus

Mayor of French city of Nice calls for weekend COVID-19 lockdown

France

Follow Followed Unfollow

Reuters, Paris

Published: 21 February ,2021: 11:56 AM GST Updated: 21 February ,2021: 01:06 PM GST

The mayor of the French city of Nice called on Sunday for a weekend lockdown in the area to stop the flow of visitors, saying tourists are welcome in normal times, but the city needs to focus on battling a sharp spike in coronavirus infections.

For more coronavirus news, visit our dedicated page.

The Nice area has the highest COVID-19 infection rate in France, with 740 new cases per week per 100,000 residents, according to Covidtracker.fr, triple the national average.

Health Minister Olivier Veran said on Saturday the government will decide this weekend on tightening virus control measures in the Mediterranean city.

“We need strong measures that go beyond the nationwide 6pm curfew, either tighter curfew, or a partial and time-specific lockdown. A weekend lockdown would make sense ...that would stop the inflow of visitors,” Mayor Christian Estrosi said on franceinfo radio.

For all the latest headlines follow our Google News channel online or via the app.

France’s health authority recommends one vaccine dose for recovered COVID-19 patients

Get the latest stories from AlArabiya on Google News