Japan's Coronavirus Death Toll Tops 1,000
The number of coronavirus deaths in Japan has now exceeded 1,000. The figure includes 13 deaths from the Diamond Princess cruise ship, that docked just outside Tokyo earlier this year.
Health authorities confirmed the latest deaths in the greater Tokyo area -- bringing the total to 1,001.
Over 26,000 people have tested positive, including more than 700 cases from the cruise ship.
Across the country, numbers have been rising, with Tokyo reporting hundreds of new infections per day.
Many seem to have emerged from nightlife districts, but there are growing concerns about the elderly.
One infectious disease expert says local medical services must quickly increase capacity to deal with a potential spike.
He says older patients are of particular concern, since they are more likely to become seriously ill.
Dozens of cases have been detected in nursing homes and other facilities across Japan.
Five people contracted the virus at a care home in Chiba, near Tokyo.
First, a caregiver got the virus.
Then it spread to others --- including patients --- despite the facility taking extra safety measures.
None became seriously ill.
Kimura Satoshi of Megumi no Kai nursing care group says, "People may think we failed to do enough, but we took all kinds of measures and precautions to stop the virus from entering our facility. We've been working really hard on this."
