Tokyo confirmed 822 new cases of COVID-19 Friday, one day after the nation declared a new state of emergency for the capital starting Monday amid a recent spike in new cases.
The daily tally on Friday exceeds last week’s total of 660, steadily rising week-on-week for the 20th consecutive day.
New infections in the capital averaged 686.7 per day leading up to Friday, compared with 537.1 the previous week.
The number of people severely ill with COVID-19 in Tokyo under the metropolitan government’s criteria stood at 62, up two from Thursday. The capital also reported two deaths.
Outside the capital, Okinawa Prefecture, also under a state of emergency, logged 55 new cases and five coronavirus-linked deaths on Friday. A total of 143 cases and two deaths were reported in Osaka Prefecture, while Aichi Prefecture logged 66 cases and two deaths. Hokkaido confirmed 50 cases and one death, while Hyogo Prefecture saw 38 infections.
On Thursday, Japan’s daily coronavirus count came to 2,246, topping 2,000 for the second consecutive day, while 17 deaths were reported. The number of severely ill patients totaled 464, down by 16.
New cases were especially on the rise in the Tokyo metropolitan area, with Chiba Prefecture reporting a five-month high of 200 cases and Kanagawa Prefecture reaching 322 cases, the first time it has exceeded 300 in 48 days.
Combine the four metropolitan-area prefectures with Saitama, where 155 new infections were found, and the number of new cases rose to 1,573, which accounts for approximately 70% of the nationwide total.
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