France recorded a record rise in virus cases in one day

France recorded a record 179,807 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus in a 24-hour period on Tuesday, one of the highest daily numbers in the world since the start of the pandemic.

This is the largest number of new daily infections in Europe, according to data available on the website Covidtracker.fr. Since the outbreak of the pandemic, only the United States and India have reported daily averages of new cases above 200,000. As of Monday, the United States has reported more than 505,000 new cases of Covid-19.

Also on Tuesday, the UK reported a record 129,471 new cases of Covid-19, but the data did not include figures for Scotland and Northern Ireland due to differences in reporting practices over the Christmas period.

The previous French record of 104,611 was set on Saturday, after the November 11, 2020 high of 86,852 consecutive days of more than 90,000 new cases per day was breached last weekend.

France’s seven-day moving average of new cases, which facilitates reporting of daily irregularities, reached a new record high of 87,500. On Sunday and Monday, the Ministry of Health reported only about 30,000 new cases per day.

Also Monday, the government announced new measures to contain infections, including restrictions on the size of gatherings, a ban on the consumption of food and beverages in transportation systems, and a return to the mandatory use of masks in open spaces.