Medical teams moved to Paris to treat virus victims

Medical teams from various regions in France are being transferred by military planes to Paris as the number of coronavirus cases keeps on increasing in the French capital.

The reinforcement operations are aimed at assisting hospital staff in the Paris region, hard-hit by the coronavirus that has claimed more than 4,000 lives in France.

France has registered a record number of 509 hospital deaths from the coronavirus in 24 hours, the chief of the health service said Wednesday.

That brings the total number of deaths from COVID-19 in hospitals since March 1 to 4,032, he said at a daily news conference.

Those deaths do not include people who died outside a hospital setting.

Giving the daily count, the chief of the health service said that 24,639 people were currently hospitalized in France with 6,017 in intensive care.

For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks.

For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, and could lead to death.