Tokyo confirmed 260 new cases of COVID-19 on Monday, as hard-hit Okinawa Prefecture logged 142 new infections — a record high for a Monday.
The figures came as the nation’s so-far sluggish COVID-19 vaccination effort got a boost from two state-run mass inoculation centers in Tokyo and Osaka that began operating at full capacity one week after their opening.
The capital’s daily tally dipped below 300 for the first time since April 5. It was also lower than the 419 cases seen last Monday, and the 340 recorded May 17.
Tokyo’s seven-day average of new cases fell to 547.1, compared with 638.1 a week earlier. Under the metropolitan government’s criteria, the number of severely ill patients rose by four from a day earlier to 75.
As of 10 a.m. Monday, the total number of cases confirmed in Japan had reached 745,685, up 25,460 from a week before. New cases across the preceding seven-day period had decreased by about 9,200 from the previous week, marking a decline for the second straight week.
The nationwide death toll linked to the virus rose by 659 through the week to bring the total to 12,993.
By prefecture, Tokyo reported the highest number of new cases over the seven-day period, at 3,910, followed by Hokkaido, at 3,099, Aichi Prefecture, at 2,571, Osaka Prefecture, at 1,886, and Okinawa Prefecture, at 1,821.
The rising number of infections prompted the central government on Friday to extend the COVID-19 state of emergency in Tokyo, Osaka and seven other prefectures by three weeks to June 20 — just over a month before the Olympics are set to begin in the capital.
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