Here are the latest updates from Japan and beyond on the coronavirus outbreak:
Photo taken from a Kyodo News helicopter on May 28, 2020, shows Tokyo Tower lit up to express the public's support and wish for the early recovery of the tourism industry, reeling due to the coronavirus outbreak. The tower's observatory reopened the same day following the May 25 full lifting of Japan's coronavirus state of emergency. (Kyodo)
As of 11 p.m., Friday, May 29 (Japan time)
- Tokyo will enter a second phase in its relaxation of business restrictions in the capital over the coronavirus pandemic starting Monday, which includes reopening cinemas, sports gyms and cram schools, Gov. Yuriko Koike said Friday.
- The J-League will resume games on July 4 following a roughly four-month stoppage due to the coronavirus pandemic, Chairman Mitsuru Murai said Friday.
- The operator of Tokyo Skytree, a popular tourist destination in the Japanese capital, said Friday it will reopen the landmark tower on Monday after a three-month closure due to the spread of coronavirus infections.
- The Japanese air force's Blue Impulse acrobatics team on Friday performed a flyover over central Tokyo in a show of respect to doctors and medical staff who have been at the forefront of the battle against the coronavirus pandemic.
- The city of Kitakyushu in Japan's southwest said Friday it has been hit by a second wave of coronavirus infections following a recent surge in the number of new cases.
- While medical workers in the United States and Europe have been heralded as heroes in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic, many nurses and doctors in Japan have faced discrimination and ostracism despite heightened social media efforts to recognize their contribution.
- Singapore said Thursday it will stop using polymerase chain reaction test as a criteria for releasing COVID-19 patients and will now adopt a time-based discharge policy, allowing such patients to go home after just 21 days of isolation.
As of 11 p.m., Thursday, May 28 (Japan time)
- A hospital in Tokyo reported nine coronavirus cases Thursday in a suspected cluster infection, only a few days after Japan completely lifted a state of emergency over the pandemic.
- The government target to have cloth face masks dubbed "Abenomasks" delivered to all remaining households by the end of the month will not be met, a health ministry official said Thursday.
- Tokyo Tower, one of the Japanese capital's major sightseeing spots, reopened its observatories Thursday following nearly two months of closure as the country carefully moves toward regaining normality following the outbreak of the coronavirus crisis.
- The U.S. death toll from the coronavirus pandemic has exceeded 100,000 as the country moves to reopen the economy that has been shut down to slow the spread of the virus, a tally by Johns Hopkins University showed Wednesday.
Useful resources for foreign residents and visitors in Japan
- Tokyo Metropolitan Government's "Tokyo Coronavirus Support Center for Foreign Residents (TOCOS)" multilingual hotline
- Available in Simple Japanese, English, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, Nepali, Indonesian, Tagalog, Thai, Portuguese, Spanish, French, Khmer, and Burmese, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays except national holidays.
0120-296-004 (toll free) - AMDA Medical Information Center's "Multilingual Consultation Service Regarding COVID-19"
(April 10~May 20, 2020)
- Available in English, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on weekends and national holidays. Also available in Chinese, Korean, Tagalog, Thai, Spanish, Vietnamese and Portuguese on designated weekdays. Check schedule here.
03-6233-9266
- Available in English and Chinese on weekdays only, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
090-3359-8324 - Tokyo Metropolitan Government's COVID-19 info
https://stopcovid19.metro.tokyo.lg.jp/en/flow/ - Tokyo Metropolitan Government hotline
- Available in English, Chinese, Korean and Japanese, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
0570-550571
- Available via fax for those with hearing impairments
03-5388-1396 - Japan National Tourism Organization's "Guide for when you are feeling ill"
- Multilingual clinic/hospital search available in English, Korean, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Japanese
https://www.jnto.go.jp/emergency/eng/mi_guide.html - JNTO's "Japan Visitor Hotline"
- Available in English, Chinese, Korean and Japanese 24 hours a day
050-3816-2787
+81-50-3816-2787 (from overseas)
http://www.mlit.go.jp/kankocho/content/001328767.pdf - Japan's health ministry hotline
- Available in Japanese only, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
0120-565653 - World Health Organization's "Q&A on coronaviruses"
https://www.who.int/news-room/q-a-detail/q-a-coronaviruses
Fireworks are set off in Gifu, central Japan, on May 28, 2020, without prior notice to the public to avoid crowds forming amid lingering risks of coronavirus infections. (Kyodo)
