French and Riviera News Monday 10th August 2020

Local

Paraglider killed in Valdeblore - A paraglider has been killed in Valdeblore, in the Alpes-Maritimes. The 30 year old suffered a fatal fall on Sunday afternoon . Emergency services were unable to revive the man who suffered a heart attack after falling 50 meters. An investigation has been opened to determine the exact circumstances.

Fatal accidents on the region’s road - Two people have been killed and 10 others injured on the region’s roads on Sunday. Two accidents occurred on the A7 motorway and one just north of Avignon resulting in the death of two motorcyclists. Police are advising motorists to take extra care on the region’s road at this busy time of year.

Quarantine for 158 passengers on a flight from Nice to Oslo - 158 passengers on a Nice-Oslo flight have been placed in quarantine due to the coronavirus. Flight SK4700 landed in Norway at the weekend as France became a “red zone” for the Norwegian authorities.

Passengers will be able to quarantine at home and do not have to stay in hotels at the airport. Norway announced on Thursday that it was returning France to the "red zone", as well as Switzerland, Monaco and the Czech Republic due to a resurgence of Covid-19.

New cases of Covid-19 declared in Monaco - Meanwhile here in the Principality the government announced on Sunday that two new Covid-19 patients had been diagnosed in Monaco, bringing the number of cases recorded since the start of the pandemic to 133. Five people are currently hospitalized.

Gas explosion in Antibes - Eight people have been injured and twenty were evacuated following a gas explosion in Antibes in the early hours of Sunday morning. Residents were woken by the explosion following a gas leak at a property located on the Belvedere impasse in Antibes. The reason for the leak is still to be determined.

Fire - A forest fire has broken out in the Estérel massif, in the town of Fréjus. Firefighters were quickly able to control the blaze which broke out at around 2pm on Sunday near the A8 motorway destroying 200 square metres of land.

National

Several French killed in attacked in Niger - Eight people, including six French nationals, have been killed in Niger on Sunday by armed men on motorcycles. The circumstances of the attack are still unclear and the Elysee has confirmed that the six French national were volunteers with ACTED relief organization.

Mask compulsory in and around French captial - To counter the threat of a second wave of Covid-19 in France, wearing a mask will be compulsory, from today, in some very busy areas of Paris as well as in Seine-Saint-Denis, Hauts-de-Seine, Val- de-Marne and Val-d'Oise.

Prevention against Covid-19 is strengthening in Île-de-France. The measure concerns certain sectors of the capital and neighboring departments.

Heatwave - Record temperatures have been recorded across France on Sunday as the heatwave continues. In Rouen it was 38.4 degrees a new record for the city. 15 departments have been placed on a red alert due to the hot weather.

Business

Twitter has reportedly held early talks about a potential merger with TikTok, the Chinese-owned video-sharing app that the Trump administration has declared a national-security threat. It’s still unclear whether Twitter will pursue a deal, which would involve TikTok’s US operations.

Microsoft has been negotiating for weeks with TikTok’s owner, Beijing-based ByteDance Ltd., and is considered the front-runner for any possible deal.

According to a new report up to 40 million people in America are now at risk of eviction.

As it prepares to lose thousands more lives to Covid-19 in the coming weeks, millions of Americans are facing destitution.

The emergency benefits that have been supporting around 30 million Americans since March ended on 31 July. Many received their last payment two weeks ago.The new report was released by US academics at the weekend.

And - New Zealand on Sunday marked 100 days since it stamped out the spread of the coronavirus as life has returned to normal for many people in the South Pacific nation of 5 million, as they attend rugby games at packed stadiums and sit down in bars and restaurants without the fear of getting infected.

New Zealand's economy has fared better than many predicted. The country has managed to keep its unemployment rate at just 4%, although many economists say the number doesn't account for recent job losses and will likely get significantly worse after a government-funded wage subsidy expires next month.
 

Sport

Formula One - Red Bull's Max Verstappen took a surprise victory in the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix at Silverstons to bring Mercede's domination to an end. 

It was an unexpectedly thrilling race and Verstappen's victory was a major upset and was helped by a decision to use the hard tyres for the start of the race.

Ferrari's Charles Leclerc was outstanding in taking fourth on a one-stop stratery. 

Football - Atletico Madrid say two individuals have tested positive for coronavirus before Thursday's Champions League quarter-final.

The Spanish club said the unnamed individuals are isolating at home.

The positive cases were discovered after first-team players and club staff travelling to Lisbon were tested in Madrid on Saturday.

They will now be retested along with close contacts of the positive cases.

Golf - American Collin Morikawa emerged from a stacked leaderboard to win the 2020 US PGA Championship after a flawless final round in San Francisco.

The world number 12 carded a six-under 64 at TPC Harding Park to reach 13 under in just his second major.

England's Paul Casey was two shots back in a tie for second with overnight leader Dustin Johnson after a 66.

Weather

The region is on a red alert due to the current heatwave across France with highs of 30 degrees in Menton, Monaco and Nice reaching up to 35 in Saint Tropez and the Var with a light to moderate breeze. Possibly clouding over by late afternoon with storms forecast in land in the Alpes Maritimes.

This evening going down to 24 degrees in the Alpes Maritimes and 20 degrees in the Var with clear skies.

The outlook, temperatures remaining the same with clear skies on Tuesday and Wednesday.

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