Belgium could soon be overwhelmed by new coronavirus infections, the health minister has warned, amid soaring case numbers across the continent.
Frank Vandenbroucke said new cases were close to a “tsunami” where authorities “no longer control what is happening”.
New measures to try to halt the spread came into force on Monday. All bars and restaurants are closed for four weeks.
Infection numbers are climbing throughout Europe, prompting new restrictions across the continent.
Belgium was one of the worst-hit countries during Europe’s first wave of coronavirus earlier this year.
Overall it has the third-highest number of Covid-related deaths per 100,000 people globally, behind only Peru and San Marino, according to Johns Hopkins University data.
From Monday, under new government restrictions designed to tackle the fresh outbreak, residents will only be allowed to see one other person from outside their household and should work from home if possible.
A curfew is in place from midnight until 05:00 for the next month and alcohol sales are banned from 20:00.
Mr Vandenbroucke described the situation in the capital Brussels and in the south of the country as “the most dangerous in all of Europe”.
The government “has only one message to the public: protect yourself, protect your loved ones, so as not to be contaminated”, he told broadcaster RTL.
Health Minister Adam Niedzielski said that other major cities were also working to set up new hospitals. The country was preparing “for the worst-case scenarios – such as 15,000 or even 20,000 new infections” each day, he said.
Government officials have urged people to stay at home, ordered restaurants to reduce opening hours and told universities and secondary schools to teach online.
The head of the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, went into self-isolation on Monday after coming into contact with an infected person.
Deputy Prime Minister Karel Havlicek said on Sunday the government would wait until restrictions show an impact before considering a full lockdown.
“We have clearly said we will wait [until November] for results,” he said.
In Prague about 2,000 football fans – including militant supporters known as ultras – clashed with police on Sunday during demonstrations against the restrictions.
