Expert Foresees Tokyo-Area Virus Emergency to Last over Month

Tokyo, Jan. 6 (Jiji Press)--Infectious disease expert Shigeru Omi has expressed the view that the upcoming coronavirus emergency for the greater Tokyo area will last for more than a month given the current situation.

The government is poised to declare a state of emergency Thursday for Tokyo and nearby prefectures hit hard by infection surges, expecting to keep it in place for about a month.

At a press conference Tuesday night, Omi said the situation in Tokyo and the neighboring prefectures has reached Stage 4, worst on the four-level scale of the severity of the coronavirus spread.

“It’s very difficult” to lower the level to Stage 3 within a month given that infections have risen to such high levels, said Omi, head of a government team for tackling the novel coronavirus crisis.

Stage 4 indicates an explosive spread of infections, a situation requiring tough measures under a state of emergency declaration by the government.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]