[Update, June 12] The Japan Times reports that Tokyo has officially lifted its coronavirus alert and commenced stage three of its reopening plan on Thursday June 11. Governor Yuriko Koike was quoted saying, 'It will be a long time until treatment or vaccination is available, so we must learn to live with the coronavirus and maintain the necessary precautions to prevent a second wave.'
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[June 11 2020] On Tuesday June 2, the day after Tokyo entered its second stage of reopening, the number of Covid-19 coronavirus cases spiked, with a total of 34 positive cases in one day. The Tokyo Metropolitan Government released a coronavirus alert, warning people to take extra caution when going out, and to avoid crowded spaces and nightlife venues.
A little over one week later, the daily number of new cases is continuing to fall. New cases have been below 20 each day since June 7, which is the requirement for the alert to be lifted. The Japan Times reports that if the coronavirus alert is lifted, Tokyo could move to stage three as early as June 11. Stage three will allow restaurants and other eateries to operate until midnight (the current curfew is set at 10pm), while bars, theme parks, pachinko and karaoke parlours will be allowed to reopen. Public events can now accommodate a maximum of 1,000 people.
Despite issuing the alert last week, the city has continued with stage two of its reopening plan. Museums, public venues and other entertainment facilities throughout Tokyo are slowly reopening. Immersive art museums teamLab Borderless and Planets opened their doors and central Tokyo’s first Ikea opened in Harajuku earlier this week, all with added safety measures.
At the time of writing, there are 5,426 cases in Tokyo and 16,846 cases in Japan.
Keep up to date with the coronavirus situation here in Tokyo/Japan here.
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