COVID-19: France death toll drops further

Sunday brought more good news for France in the COVID-19 pandemic that has brought the world to its knees over the past two months.

An even lower death toll was reported by the Health Ministry as cases of infection continue to drop in the country.

Since the start of the outbreak, the death toll in France stands at 24,895 with the confirmed cases of infection coming in at 131,287.

On Sunday, there were 135 additional fatalities compared with 169 on Saturday, a drop of 34. The number of deaths in hospital stood at 101 while 34 people succumbed to the disease in nursing homes. The total number of fatalities in hospital to date is 15,583 and the total fatalities in nursing homes is 9,312.

Despite the severity of the virus, most people experience mild symptoms and recover. Since the start, 50,784 people have recovered in France from the pandemic and have returned home.

Hospitalizations dropped on Sunday, with the number standing at 25,815, a drop of 12 patients over the day before. The number of those in intensive care fell to 3,819, down by 8 patients.

France is set to lift the nationwide coronavirus lockdown on May 11.

After originating in China last December, COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, has spread to 187 countries and regions across the world. Europe and the US are currently the worst-hit regions.

The pandemic has killed just over 245,500 people, with total infections at almost 3.47 million, while just over 1.11 million people have recovered from the disease, according to figures compiled by the US-based Johns Hopkins University.