Paris may soon enter another blockade, as new variants of the coronavirus make intensive care units across the city crowded.
The Associated Press reports that French authorities are considering another blockade as special medical planes transferred patients from Paris to less saturated regions.
“If we have to block, we will,” said Jérôme Salomon, director of the French public health agency, on Sunday. “The situation is complex, tense and is getting worse in the Paris region.”
The AP notes that the French government has relied on curfews in recent months to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus, but Salomon said that a national curfew at 6 pm “was not enough”.
According to Salomon, there are currently more ICU patients in France – about 6,300 – than the number of ICU beds that the country had before the pandemic.
The European Union, which includes France, has approved four vaccines for use in its member countries, including those from Pfizer, Moderna, AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson.
According to data from the World Health Organization (WHO), Frances has confirmed almost 4 million cases of coronavirus and almost 90 thousand deaths, one of the highest in the world.
In February, the French government announced stricter checks for coronavirus on its border with Germany as part of additional efforts to curb the spread of COVID-19.