Europe will be hit by second Lockdown

Europe WILL be hit by a second wave of coronavirus because so few people on the continent have any immunity, warns EU's boss on disease control

• Dr Andrea Ammon said European countries should prepare for another outbreak
• It will be inevitable because most of the population have no immunity
• Studies show less than 15% of people have antibodies - a sign of some immunity
• Dr Ammon warned the virus is not going away any time soon and is 'adapted'
• Experts have warned against celebrating figures that show dwindling outbreaks

Europe will be hit by a second wave of coronavirus - it's just a question of when and how big, according to the EU's boss on disease control. 

Dr Andrea Ammon urged the continent to prepare for another crisis, which she said was inevitable because so few people will have developed COVID-19 immunity.

Studies suggest less than 15 per cent of the population in Europe's worst-hit nations have already been infected, leaving the majority vulnerable in the future. 

Dr Ammon warned the virus - scientifically known as SARS-CoV-2 - is not going away any time soon because it is 'very well adapted to humans'. 

Top experts have warned against celebrating figures that show dwindling outbreaks across Europe because the battle is yet to be won. 

Almost all scientists agree the infection is bound to re-emerge in a second wave in the absence of a vaccine or cure for the coronavirus. 

The biggest fear is the second wave will occur during the winter and coincide with flu season, which could overwhelm already swamped hospitals.

Dr Andrea Ammon, director of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, said another wave will be inevitable because so few people have immunity to the disease

Europe has become the centre of the coronavirus crisis, with more than 164,350 deaths and 1.74million cases (pictured). The UK has the most cases and deaths

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Experts have warned against celebrating figures that show dwindling outbreaks across Europe because the battle is yet to be won. Pictured, how daily deaths have fallen in the UK

Dr Ammon, director of European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), said a second wave of the coronavirus is no longer a theory.

In an interview with The Guardian, she said: 'The question is when and how big, that is the question in my view.

'Looking at the characteristics of the virus, looking at what now emerges from the different countries in terms of population immunity – which isn’t all that exciting, between 2 per cent and 14 per cent, that leaves still 85 per cent to 90 per cent of the population susceptible.