State of emergency declared in Tokyo, Osaka region as virus surges

Tougher restrictions such as banning restaurants and bars from serving alcohol and asking major commercial facilities to temporarily close will be in place from Sunday through May 11.

The emergency declaration, covering roughly a quarter of Japan's population of 126 million and about a third of its economy, comes with just three months to go until the Tokyo Olympics begin.

«We will implement short and intensive measures during Golden Week, strengthening steps related to eating establishments and temporarily halting the flow of people,» Suga said in announcing the decision at a COVID-19 task force meeting.

While the state of emergency does not entail a hard lockdown like some other countries have imposed and largely relies on the cooperation of people and businesses, the measures are significant and have more teeth than the previous declaration in January.

Spectators will effectively be banned from large events such as professional baseball and soccer games. Train and bus operators will be asked to end operations earlier on weeknights, with reduced services on weekends and holidays.

Eating establishments will be asked to close by 8 p.m., while those serving alcohol or offering karaoke services will be asked to close entirely, with a fine of up to 300,000 yen ($2,800) for offenders.

Major commercial facilities including department stores, shopping malls, movie theaters and amusement parks will also be asked to shut, with the exception of sections selling daily necessities. Schools will remain open, though universities are encouraged to conduct classes online.

Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike said she will ask businesses to turn off their lights after 8 p.m. to discourage people from going out late at night.

The state of emergency may be extended if the situation does not improve sufficiently, said Shigeru Omi, an infectious disease expert who chairs a government subcommittee on the coronavirus response.

A quasi-state of emergency is already in effect in the major cities of Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto as well as in Hyogo and six other prefectures, consisting of measures including the 8 p.m. cutoff for restaurants and bars, and capping attendance at large events at 5,000.

But they have been unsuccessful in bringing down coronavirus cases, with the nationwide tally of new infections surpassing 5,000 for a third consecutive day on Friday. Osaka, currently experiencing the worst outbreak in the country, reported more than 1,000 for a fourth straight day, while Tokyo saw 759 and Hyogo logged a record 567.

Health experts have warned of the spread of highly contagious variants of the coronavirus, primarily a type first detected in Britain. A Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare panel estimates variants account for about 80 percent of all cases in Osaka and Hyogo and a rapidly growing share in Tokyo.

Yasutoshi Nishimura, the minister in charge of the government's coronavirus response, called on people to stay at home and refrain from nonessential outings during the state of emergency.

The growing strain on hospitals is also a concern. Osaka no longer had any hospital beds for severely ill COVID-19 patients as of Thursday.

Meanwhile, Japan has lagged behind other countries in its vaccine rollout, with only around 1 percent of its population having received at least one dose of Pfizer Inc.'s two shots.

Suga has said the country's third emergency declaration, following those in April last year and January, will not affect the staging of the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics, reiterating the government will continue efforts to ensure they are «safe and secure.»

But public skepticism remains high, with 39.2 percent of respondents in a Kyodo News poll this month saying the games should be canceled and 32.8 percent saying they should be rescheduled.

Suga also decided to add Ehime in western Japan to the list of prefectures under the quasi-state of emergency, with tougher restrictions to be in place from Sunday to May 11.

Miyagi and Okinawa had been slated to end the measures on May 5 but will also extend them to May 11.