The mayor of Nice in southern France urged tourists to stay away on Sunday, while the holiday destination faces a sharp rise in COVID-19 cases.
“We will be happy to receive many tourists this summer, once we win this battle, but it is better to have a period while we say ‘don’t come here, it’s not the time,'” Mayor Christian Estrosi told Radio France Info.
He called on the government to impose tougher restrictions on the Mediterranean city, such as closing a weekend, to discourage tourists.
“We need strong measures to overcome the state of competition at 18:00 at national level, either a tighter control or a partial and time-specific blockade. A weekend closure would make sense, “Estrosi said.
Nice has struggled with the country’s highest infection rate, with 740 new cases per week per 100,000 residents, according to local figures.
Estrosi said the influx of visitors who came during the holiday season helped increase the number of cases.
“The weather is beautiful, everyone is in a hurry to come here. A weekend closure would put an end to this, without stopping the economic activity in the city “, said Estrosi.
With Post threads