GENEVA: Europe’s painful second coronavirus wave may be starting to ease, a top World Health Organization official said Thursday, as cases drop slightly even though over the past week someone on the continent died every 17 seconds from the virus. The cautious prognosis came after new diagnoses of the novel coronavirus slowed last week across Europe to 1.8 million cases, compared with 2 million the week before last. Hospitals across the continent remain packed with patients.