Japan's COVID-19 cases top 8,000 one week after emergency declaration issued

Coronavirus cases in Japan topped 8,000 on Tuesday evening, health ministry and local authorities said, one week after a state of emergency was declared for Tokyo and six other prefectures over the COVID-19 crisis here.

According to the latest figures, the number of new infection rose by 482 nationwide, bringing the total to 8,173 infections.

These included 161 new cases confirmed in Tokyo, the nation's epicenter for the virus, and 59 cases in Osaka, also a hotbed for COVID-19.

The death toll from the pneumonia-causing virus now stands at a total of 174, including those from a cruise ship that was quarantined in Yokohama near Tokyo, the latest figure showed.

Last Tuesday, Japan declared a state of emergency over the coronavirus in a bid to better empower prefectures to take measures to curb its spread.

The prefectures under the declaration are Tokyo, Osaka, Kanagawa, Saitama, Chiba, Hyogo and Fukuoka prefectures, but other prefectures' governors have asked to be added to the list.

Other prefectures, meanwhile, have issued their own state of emergency independent of the central government and asked their residents to take various measures in a bid to prevent the virus' spread.

In Tokyo, the epicenter of Japan's outbreak, Japanese "izakaya" pubs have been requested to close their doors at 8 p.m. and restaurants asked stop serving alcohol by 7 p.m. to dissuade people from gathering in groups in confined spaces.

Places in the capital where people typically gather in large groups have been asked to suspend their business activities.

These include live music venues, night clubs, internet cafes, pachinko parlors, sports clubs, game centers and cinemas.

Essential services like medical institutions, supermarkets, convenience stores, hotels, public transport providers and financial services, among others, are operating as usual with the proviso they take measures to curb the spread of the virus.

While Tokyo has confirmed well over one-third of all COVID-19 cases across nation with a total of 2,319 cases, Osaka Prefecture, as of Tuesday evening, had recorded 894 cases, followed by Kanagawa Prefecture with 579.

Chiba Prefecture has 502 COVID-19 cases, while Saitama Prefecture has recorded 452 cases of the virus, the latest figures showed.

Fukuoka Prefecture has recorded 406 cases of COVID-19, while cases in Hyogo Prefecture currently stand at 403, as of Tuesday evening.

The health ministry also said there are currently a total of 158 patients considered severely ill and are on ventilators to receive respiratory assistance or have been admitted to intensive care units for medical treatment.

The ministry added that in total, 1,497 people have been discharged from hospitals after their symptoms improved, according to the latest figures.