
TOKYO: The daily number of novel coronavirus cases confirmed in Japan stood at 7,884 on Friday, marking a record high for the fourth straight day.
Tokyo confirmed 2,392 new infection cases, the second-highest figure on record in the Japanese capital after the 2,447 cases, set on Thursday.
New cases hit a record high in three prefectures neighboring Tokyo, at 838 in Kanagawa, 496 in Saitama and at 455 in Chiba. The Japanese government on Friday put the four prefectures under a fresh state of emergency over the coronavirus, which is slated to run until Feb. 7. The four prefectures accounted for more than half of the new cases found across the country on Friday.
The country confirmed a record 78 new deaths from COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus, on the day, including 19 in Osaka Prefecture, western Japan, and 10 in Hokkaido, northernmost Japan. Across the nation, the number of patients with severe COVID-19 symptoms grew by 30 from Thursday to a record 826 as of Friday.
Record daily infection cases were reported also in 14 prefectures, including Osaka, at 655, Hyogo, at 297, and Kyoto, at 147. The three western prefectures decided Friday to ask the central government on Saturday to declare a COVID-19 state of emergency for them. The other 11 prefectures with a new daily high were Tochigi, at 150, Ibaraki, at 127, Kumamoto, at 101, Gunma, at 100, Shizuoka, at 92, Nara, at 56, Mie, at 42, Ehime, at 38, Yamanashi, at 36, Kagawa, at 34, and Saga, at 24.
Aichi Prefecture, which is also considering asking for a state of emergency, reported 405 new cases, its second-highest level, after a record 431 logged on Thursday.
Of the new infection cases confirmed in Tokyo on Friday, 711 are people in their 20s, 536 in their 30s and 340 in their 40s. Those aged 65 or over accounted for 235, according to the metropolitan government.
The number of severely ill COVID-19 patients in Tokyo under the metropolitan government’s standards rose by eight from the previous day to a record 129.
According to the health ministry, two coronavirus variant cases were newly found on Friday, with the cumulative number of such cases rising to 27.
Of the two people, a woman in her 70s arrived at Kansai International Airport in Osaka on Saturday, after visiting the United Arab Emirates. The other person, a man in his 40s arrived at Narita International Airport in Chiba on Sunday. He has been to Nigeria.
Both people have no symptoms, according to the ministry.
JIJI Press