Aug 13 (theguardian.com) - Health experts in Japan have said the country is confronting a coronavirus “disaster” and urged the government to take immediate action to stem a surge in infections.
The warning came as local media reported that spectators will be banned from almost all events at the Paralympics, which are due to open on 24 August.
The government and organisers of the Games will make an official decision next week, Kyodo cited unnamed officials as saying. Media reports said sports fans would be denied admission to venues in Tokyo and Saitama prefectures, although a limited number could attend events in Shizuoka prefecture, which does not border Tokyo. Organisers are reportedly considering inviting schoolchildren to venues.
Japan is in the midst of an explosion of infections caused by the highly transmissible Delta variant. It reported more than 18,000 cases on Thursday, exceeding the previous record of 15,812 logged a day earlier, according to the Kyodo news agency.
Tokyo, which is under a state of emergency targeting the capital’s night-time economy, recorded 4,989 cases on Thursday, the second-highest figure since the start of the pandemic. The western prefecture of Osaka reported a record 1,654 infections the same day.
Health officials are also concerned about the number of people in Tokyo with serious symptoms, which has risen above 200 for the first time, amid warnings that the city’s hospitals are coming under renewed pressure, with those aged in their 40s and 50s occupying many of the available beds.
In addition, more 20,000 people with milder symptoms are being asked to stay at home, a policy that in the past has resulted in deaths in isolation.
“If infections continue to surge at the current pace, we won’t be able to save lives that could otherwise be saved,” said Shigeru Omi, the government’s most senior adviser on the virus. “This is already happening. The situation is like a disaster.”
