Eiffel tower reopens as WHO warns of Europe virus upsurge

PARIS: France reopened the Eiffel Tower to tourists on Thursday after three months of closure because of the coronavirus, ramping up attempts to return to normality even as the WHO warned the disease was resurgent in Europe and continued its rampage through the Americas.

Europe saw an increase in weekly cases for the first time in months last week, according to the World Health Organisation’s regional office, which warned that health systems in some countries would once again be pushed to the brink.

But the number of new cases in Europe is dwarfed by the Americas, where Brazil and the United States recorded almost 80,000 infections between them on Wednesday.

In the face of the grim news, a few dozen mostly French tourists braved scorching heat in Paris to climb the Eifffel Tower’s iron stairs as the lifts were deemed too small for social distancing. “I’m tearing up, but they’re tears of joy. I’m going to climb, but slowly,” said Therese, 60, from the southwestern city of Perpignan. “And if I don’t make it, it’s no big deal!” But the joyous reopening of an iconic tourist site was dampened by a new warning from the WHO that the virus is not yet done with Europe.