Covid 19 coronavirus: the terrifying death warning from the World Health Organization

The number of coronavirus cases in Europe is increasing and the World Health Organization warns that deaths worldwide could more than double.

The UK and France reported their biggest increase in daily coronavirus numbers today as Europe is hit by a second wave.

Global deaths have reached 985,302, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.

The World Health Organization has warned that coronavirus deaths could double to two million if infection-fighting measures are not maintained.

It comes as restrictions tighten in Europe and the United States crosses another bleak milestone.

The most affected United States exceeded seven million cases, more than a fifth of the world total. This is despite the fact that the United States only represents 4 percent of the world’s population.

It took the United States just 25 days to register another million cases after it marked six million infections on Aug. 31.

Now the world is forced to face the chilling possibility of two million global deaths from the pandemic.

“One million is a terrible number and we must reflect on that before we begin to consider a second million,” WHO emergency director Michael Ryan told reporters when asked how much more deaths could increase.

But he added: “Are we collectively prepared to do whatever it takes to avoid that number?

“If we don’t take those steps … yes, we will be seeing that number and sadly much higher.”

The WHO warning came as Spanish officials expanded the closure in and around Madrid on Friday to cover a million people.

Madrid’s health authority said new rules largely banning tens of thousands of people from leaving its districts, in addition to the 850,000 already living under similar restrictions, would be enforced starting Monday.

Across Europe, new peaks were emerging, with Poland and France the last to post record numbers.

France’s daily cases topped 16,000 for the first time in a clear indicator of the virus’ resurgence, and the French government faced protests from the hotel industry as it prepares tough new restrictions.

On the other side of the Channel, British authorities announced restrictions that now extend to a quarter of the country’s population, while two supermarket chains said they were rationing purchases of certain products to suppress panic buying.