Authorities in Shizuoka Prefecture, central Japan, say they have lost contact with three firefighters and a police officer who were dispatched to the site of a fire.

Police and firefighting authorities say they received a report from a security firm that a factory warehouse was on fire in the town of Yoshida early Sunday morning.

Japanese Justice Minister Mori Masako says she has given instructions to isolate 40 convicts in western Japan who may have had contact with a prison officer who tested positive for the new coronavirus.

The officer in his 40s, who works at Osaka detention center in Osaka City, was confirmed to be infected on Sunday.

Japanese Defense Minister Taro Kono has said a liaison officer has started working at a US command center for a Self-Defense Force intelligence-gathering mission in the Middle East.

Kono attended an Upper House committee session on Friday about the mission aimed at ensuring the safety of Japan-related shipping operating in the region.