COVID-19: France daily death toll reaches a low of 166

By Cindi Cook

PARIS (AA) - The weekend saw more positive numbers for France in the coronavirus outbreak, with far fewer deaths and cases of infection than previous days.

According to the latest figures reported by the Health Ministry, the death toll in France rose to 24,760.

On Saturday, there were 166 additional fatalities in hospitals and nursing homes compared with 218 deaths on Friday.

The total fatalities in hospitals to date is 15,487 and the total fatalities in nursing homes is 9,273.

The cases of infection rose to 201,667 after 1,530 new cases.

Despite the severity of the virus, most people experience mild symptoms and recover. Since the start, more than 50,000 people have recovered in France from the epidemic and have returned home.

Hospitalizations dropped on Saturday, with the number standing at 25,827, a drop of 60 patients over the day before. The number of those in intensive care fell to 3,827, down by 51 patients.

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 almost 241,000 people, with total infections at almost 3.4 million, while just over 1 million people have recovered from the disease, according to figures compiled by the US-based Johns Hopkins University.