Tokyo To Raise Virus Alert Level To Highest One
The Tokyo Metropolitan Government plans to raise its coronavirus alert level to the highest of four levels on Thursday. The COVID-19 outbreak is flaring up in the Japanese capital.
Infectious disease experts and doctors are scheduled to meet on Thursday to assess the current situation.
Tokyo confirmed more than 300 new daily cases four times during the seven-day period from last Wednesday to this Tuesday. The tally was 298 on Tuesday. That was the second highest number for a Tuesday.
Fewer new cases tend to be reported on Mondays and Tuesdays compared to other days of the week, as fewer tests are conducted during the weekends.
Among the capital's key indicators, the seven-day average of the number of new daily cases exceeded 300 on Sunday.
The number of cases in which infection routes cannot be traced has also been rising since the start of this month.
Tokyo lowered the alert level from the highest to the second highest on September 10. The city's officials plan to keep the "medical care availability" alert level at the second highest level on the four-point scale.
The officials appear to be undecided about whether to ask restaurants and bars to shorten their business hours.
