Japan Records Highest Daily COVID-19 Cases and Deaths... Including Variant from the UK

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Eunmo Koo] As Japan's daily confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) continue to hit record highs, the situation is worsening, and five cases of variant COVID-19 infections have been confirmed among returnees from the United Kingdom, raising alarms.

According to the local public broadcaster NHK on the 26th, 3,831 new COVID-19 cases were confirmed nationwide in Japan the previous day. Following 3,271 cases on the 23rd and 3,740 cases on the 24th, the daily record for new infections was broken for three consecutive days. The cumulative number of COVID-19 cases in Japan has risen to 215,265.

The number of new cases by region the previous day was highest in Tokyo Metropolis (884), Kanagawa Prefecture (466), and Saitama Prefecture (298). This indicates a surge of COVID-19 infections in the metropolitan area. The death toll increased by 63 to reach 3,199. The number of deaths confirmed the previous day was the highest since the spread of COVID-19 began.

Meanwhile, cases of infection with a variant COVID-19 virus known for its high transmissibility have been confirmed in Japan for the first time. Norihisa Tamura, Japan’s Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare, held an emergency press conference the previous night and announced that five people returning from the United Kingdom were confirmed to be infected with the variant COVID-19 virus.

The five infected with the variant virus returned between the 18th and 21st of this month through Haneda Airport (2 people) and Kansai Airport (3 people), and tested positive in airport COVID-19 screenings. Analysis of their samples by the National Institute of Infectious Diseases of Japan revealed the variant COVID-19 virus. Minister Tamura stated regarding these individuals, "Since they tested positive during airport quarantine, it is unlikely that they had contact that led to infecting others after arriving in the country."

Minister Tamura also explained that starting from the 26th, people returning from the variant virus outbreak countries, the United Kingdom and South Africa, will be required to stay in a hotel for three days, followed by additional COVID-19 testing. If negative, they will be allowed to return home without using public transportation.

Those returning from the two countries will also be subject to a 14-day self-quarantine.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.