Emmanuel Macron orders coronavirus curfew in major cities as France declares state of emergency
- New restrictions will run from 9pm to 6am in areas already on maximum alert, including Paris, Lyon and Toulouse
- Measures starting on Saturday will last four weeks and be enforced with fines of up to US$1,760
French President Emmanuel Macron announced a curfew in the country’s biggest cities to stem the unrelenting spread of the coronavirus, as rising infections begin to fill up hospital beds.
“This virus is dangerous and serious for everyone,” Macron said during a televised interview on Wednesday, soon after the government declared a new public health state of emergency. “We are at a stage where we need to react.”
The curfew will run from 9pm to 6am in cities already on maximum alert. They include Paris, Grenoble, Lille, Lyon, Toulouse, and Montpellier.
The French government has been struggling to come up with restrictions without inflicting the same economic damage caused by a national lockdown earlier this year.
The delicate balancing act was evident when it advocated for people to book October holidays, even with cities including Paris closing bars and restaurants early to contain the disease.
