Spain's health minister described a second wave of the coronavirus sweeping the county as “out of control” on Thursday as the government considered whether to follow France and other European countries in imposing curfews, Reuters reports.

A day earlier, Spain became the first Western European country to record 1 million Covid-19 cases. The country's death toll stands at 34,366 people.

“Not to take these measures would be irresponsible,” said Francisco Igea, deputy leader of the Castilla and Leon region, which formally requested the central government to decide on a curfew.

“The lives of tens of thousands of people are at stake,” he told a news conference.

Castilla la Mancha's health chief will request a nationwide curfew at a video meeting between Health Minister Salvador Illa and Spanish regions later on Thursday, a source with the regional government said.