France sending medics to French Guiana

While the virus spread stabilized more than two months ago in mainland France, infections started surging in French Guiana more recently as the coronavirus swept South America, and especially neighbouring Brazil. Based on this “worrying” trend, the French national health agency said Friday night that medical staff reinforcements will be sent in the coming days.

France is sending medics to its South American territory of French Guiana to help treat growing numbers of coronavirus patients in a region where half the population lives below the French poverty level. While the virus spread stabilized more than two months ago in mainland France, infections started surging in French Guiana more recently as the coronavirus swept South America, and especially neighbouring Brazil.

Based on this “worrying” trend, the French national health agency said Friday night that medical staff reinforcements will be sent in the coming days. The military has already stepped in to fly patients from saturated facilities in French Guiana to the French Caribbean island of Martinique for treatment.

Of the roughly 5,000 new cases confirmed across France over the past week, 1,400 of them were in French Guiana, with a population of just 300,000, according to the health agency. About a quarter of virus tests in French Guiana have been positive in recent weeks. Nationwide, France has reported 310 new virus clusters since it started reopening in early May. France has reported the fifth-highest number of virus deaths worldwide, a total of 29,893, about half of them in nursing homes.