TOKYO: Two more fatal cases from the new coronavirus were confirmed in Japan on Thursday, with the death toll in the country from the virus rising to 24.

The municipal government of Nagoya in the central prefecture of Aichi said that a resident in her 80s died of pneumonia resulting from the virus. The woman had underlying high-blood pressure. In the city of Sapporo in the northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido, a male patient in his 70s died.

The city of Himeji in Hyogo Prefecture, western Japan, said that four female inpatients in their 50s to 80s at a local medical institution have tested positive for the virus. One of the four, who is in her 70s, had a fever of 37 degrees Celsius on Wednesday morning, according to the city. The other three have no symptoms.

With a series of coronavirus infections having been confirmed at the institution, the city is conducting virus tests on inpatients, doctors and nurses, suspecting the possibility of in-hospital infections.

In the city of Niigata, central Japan, three people, including an infant, were confirmed to be infected with the virus.

JIJI Press