Gulf Today Report
Tokyo has reported daily coronavirus cases hit a record high of 2,848 on Tuesday as infection spreads in the Olympic host city.
The Japanese capital and Olympic host city Tokyo is on track to report a record number of coronavirus cases, days after the Olympics began, exceeding the earlier record of 2,520 cases from Jan. 7.
READ MORE
India reports lowest new coronavirus cases since March 17
UAE sees 1,549 new coronavirus, 7 deaths in 24 hours
Tokyo, which remains under a state of emergency, is set to report more than 3,000 new cases on Tuesday, Japanese media said, in line with warnings by health experts that seasonal factors, increased mobility, and the spread of variants would lead to a rebound in COVID-19 this summer.
A Japanese broadcaster said on Tuesday that in light of the surge in cases, hospitals in the Tokyo area were told to consider pushing back planned surgery and scaling down other treatments.
A mother and her child wearing protective covering walk in Tokyo on Tuesday. AP
Meanwhile, Olympic organisers remained on alert to monitor the impact from a tropical storm off Japan's east coast, while those competitors unaffected by the weather got their competitions off to a flying start.
It brings Tokyo’s total to more than 200,000 since the pandemic began last year.
Tokyo is under its fourth state of emergency that will last through the Olympics and into the Paralympics next month.
Experts have warned the more contagious delta variant could cause a surge during the Olympics, which started Friday.