Lunchtime News Friday April 30th 2021

Post vaccination infection - A retired couple from Marseille are reported to have tested positive for coronavirus despite both having received two shots of the BioNtech Pfizer vaccine.

The couple, both in their 70s have contracted a milder form of the virus but the development is causing concern among health experts and will be further investigated.

Although vaccines do provide much greater protection against the virus, they are not 100 percent effective and some of the more recent mutations may be able to evade inoculation.

 

Patient numbers down - Numbers of people receiving intensive car treatment for Covid-19 are falling across France.

On Thursday, it was reported that 5,800 people are still receiving intensive care  treatment with 392 admissions in the past 24 hours.

Total numbers in hospital with the virus on Thursday were 29,487, down from 29,911 on Wednesday.

321 people have died from the virus over the past 24 hours.

The government has announced a gradual easing of coronavirus restrictions from Monday but has stressed that it won’t hesitate to re-impose measures if cases start to rise again.

 

Indian variant - A man who has recently returned from India has tested positive for the Indian variant of the virus in the Lot-et-Garonne department.

It’s the first case of the Indian variant to show up in France.

A further potential case of the variant is being studied in Bordeaux.

Neither patient is said to be suffering from extreme illness but both are being kept under close observation.

The Indian variant is ravaging the sub-continent with India reporting 3,645 deaths in the past 24 hours.

 

Virus in retreat - Analysis of sewer water in Nice has shown that the coronavirus is in retreat across the city.

Analysis shows that the amount of virus found in the city’s sewer water has fallen 8-fold since the height of the health crisis in February.

Levels of the virus found in sewer water are higher in the centre of the city as well as the Ariane, Moulins and Bon Voyage areas but are falling away.

 

BlaBlaCar - The car sharing service BlaBlaCar is to relaunch its bus service from the 12th of May.

Services have been suspended because of the pandemic but the firm says that it will be offering bus services to and from 100 French destinations again from the middle of next month.

However, the name BlaBlaBus is to be scrapped with the firm opting to group all its services under its main brand name.

Last local news

French and Riviera News Friday August 8th 2025

The largest wildfire in at least 50 years in France, which claimed one life, has now been brought under control. The fire swept through 17,000 hectare... French and Riviera News Friday August 8th 2025 Read More

08/08/2025

Weather Forecast - Friday 8th August 2025

A yellow heatwave warning remains in place today. Hazy sunshine with a gentle coastal breeze. Daytime are forecast to reach between 30 and 32°C in the... Weather Forecast - Friday 8th August 2025 Read More

08/08/2025

Evening Update Thursday 7th August 2025

A major pile-up involving around ten vehicles, including a truck and a motorcycle, occurred early on the 7th of August in the Las Planas tunnel on the... Evening Update Thursday 7th August 2025 Read More

07/08/2025

Banque Havilland Monaco rebrands as Moncrief Private Bank after acquisition

Banque Havilland (Monaco) SAM will relaunch as Moncrief Private Bank (Monaco) SAM in late 2025, following its acquisition by an international investor... Banque Havilland Monaco rebrands as Moncrief Private Bank after acquisition Read More

07/08/2025

Monaco bans electric scooters and bikes for under-14s in major road safety shake-up

Monaco has introduced a new road safety law that bans children under 14 from using electric scooters or electric bikes on public roads. The change is ... Monaco bans electric scooters and bikes for under-14s in major road safety shake-up Read More

07/08/2025