Europe braces for impact of 2nd-wave pandemic restrictions

Millions of residents across Europe are bracing for what is likely to be a difficult winter ahead. After making the necessary sacrifices to get through the first phase of the COVID-19 pandemic in the spring, Europeans enjoyed a period of relative freedom — to return to schools and bars, fly between countries and go on holiday. But rising infections in the last month have forced governments to consider tightening restrictions again. While some countries have seen COVID-19 case numbers return to what they were before the spring, others are being hit harder than ever. For example, the Czech Republic warned earlier this week that the country's medical system could be on the brink of a breakdown. 'We are in danger of collapsing here,' Interior Minister Jan Hamacek warned Czech media earlier this week. If the current outbreak, which saw a record 9,721 cases confirmed within a 24-hour period on Thursday, is not contained soon, Hamacek said, there will be 'corpse freezers in the streets.'