France sets dates to emerge from pandemic lockdown

By Cindi Cook

PARIS (AA) - In a much-anticipated announcement on Thursday, French President Emmanuel Macron set May 19 as the date for a partial reopening of restaurants, cafes, and bars as well as shops and cultural venues closed during the coronavirus pandemic.

He delivered the news on the government’s four-stage plan via several regional news outlets instead of a traditional televised address, as reported by franceinfo.

The first date in the president’s schedule to bring the nation out of lockdown will come next Monday, when middle and high school students return to classes and limitations on daytime travel will end.

Then May 19 is set to see the reopening of the terraces of restaurants, cafes, bars, all non-essential shops, museums, playhouses, and movie theaters. Eating and drinking establishments will limit tables or groups to six people. Sanitary measures will be observed, and seating capacities will be limited to 800 people indoors and 1,000 outdoors in each venue to stem any further spread of the virus.

The current curfew in place, 7 p.m. to 6 a.m., is set to be pushed back on May 19, to start at 9 p.m.

The third stage is set for June 9, when restaurants, cafes, and bars will open indoors, and gyms will be allowed to open as well, and the curfew will move to 11 p.m.

The last stage of the government’s plan is set for June 30, when the curfew is to end and all restrictions will be lifted, with the exception of clubs and discos.

The president added that any department which sees 400 people with the virus per 1,000 inhabitants may see restrictions reintroduced.

France has endured just over a year of being at the epicenter of the pandemic in Europe, weathering the third wave of a disease that has taken 103,947 lives to date, according to the latest figure from the government’s Health Department, and 324 in just the last 24 hours. A total of 11,623 hospitalizations have occurred over the last seven days and with 2,705 of those cases in intensive care.

Worldwide, the death toll from COVID-19 stands at almost 3.2 million in 192 countries since emerging in China in December 2019. France remains fifth on the list of countries most affected. The number of infections is now almost 150 million, according to the latest figures from the US’ Johns Hopkins University.