Tokyo breaks record for COVID-19 infections amid Olympics

On July 27, 2,848 new cases of covid-19 infection were detected in the capital of Japan . This is a record since the beginning of the pandemic, writes Japan Times.

According to data from Johns Hopkins University, 203.3 thousand cases of the disease have been recorded in Tokyo since the beginning of the pandemic. A new jump in incidence on the graph with the number of cases in Tokyo is visible in late June - early July, even before the start of the active phase of the Olympics.

The day before, on Monday, 1,429 new cases of COVID-19 infection were recorded in Tokyo, half as many as today, and at the same time twice as high as a week ago. In total, more than a thousand new cases of COVID-19 infection have been recorded in Tokyo for eight days.

With the number of cases rising in the Japanese capital, authorities have asked hospitals to prepare more beds for patients. As hospitals are accepting more patients, Tokyo is aiming to increase the number of beds to 6,406 from its current capacity of 5,967 by early next month, according to TBS, cited by the Japan Times.

The surge in incidence, according to REUTERS, commented on Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga. He noted that only 2% of new cases are people over 65 years of age (considered to be at risk). He appealed to the people of Tokyo with a request not to leave the house without unnecessary necessity, and to watch all the Olympic competitions on TV.