France registers surge in coronavirus cases by 500 in past 24 hours, 48 killed

The number of people infected with coronavirus in France increased by almost 500 in the past 24 hours, approaching a total of nearly 2,300 cases, Health Minister Olivier Veran said on Wednesday (local time).

As many as 48 people have died from the COVID-19 in the country.

"As of today's evening, 2,281 cases of coronavirus infection have been diagnosed in France, which is almost 500 more than yesterday," Veran said during a briefing.

"There are currently 105 people in the intensive care wards," the minister added.