Paris, March 16 French President Emmanuel Macron will deliver a televised speech on Monday evening, the second in less than a week, on the health crisis related to coronavirus outbreak, which according to health authorities is "extremely worrying" and "deteriorating very fast", his office said.
Macron's address is scheduled for 8 p.m. (local time) following a meeting with prime minister, ministers and military advisers on the COVID-19 pandemic and ways to control its spread, Xinhua news agency reported.
Last Thursday, in his last speech to the nation, Macron ordered countrywide shutdown of kindergartens, schools and universities until further notice. He also called on the elderly, the worst-affected group by the virus, to stay in self-confinement while urging the public to restrict their movement.
Tougher measures have been announced since then, including the shutdown of all non-essential public places, including cafes, restaurants, cinemas and discos.
However, the virus has been spreading fast across French regions, infecting 5,423 people as of Sunday, up by 923 from a day earlier, the country's biggest daily rise.
A total of 127 patients died from infection, up from 91 deaths registered on Saturday. In addition, 300 patients were hospitalised in intensive care.
Following the relentless increase of positive cases despite of government efforts, speculations mount over a possible Italy-like scenario which might include a drastic lockdown in regions where hospitals are already overcrowded.
Early on Monday, Director General of Health Jerome Salomon warned that the Covid-19 outbreak was "extremely worrying" as "the epidemic is very rapid, the number of cases doubles every three days".
"There is a real worry that the speed of the outbreak could saturate hospitals and this is something we absolutely want to avoid," he told France Inter radio.
( With inputs from IANS )