Tokyo raises COVID-19 alert to second-highest level amid fears of entering new wave

TOKYO, Nov. 17 (Xinhua) -- The Tokyo Metropolitan government on Thursday raised its COVID-19 alert to the second-highest level on its four-tier scale.

The alert was set at the second-highest level for the first time since Oct. 6.

At the coronavirus monitoring meeting of the metropolitan government on Thursday, an expert warned that the capital "can be considered to be entering the eighth wave of infections."

As of Thursday, the capital's seven-day rolling average of new COVID-19 cases stands at 8,276, up 24.7 percent from a week before, with daily cases exceeding the 10,000 threshold the two previous days, the highest level in two months.

Based on an estimate presented at the meeting, the seven-day average would reach around 12,300 by the end of this month if new infections increase at the current pace.

The resurgence of the virus came after the Japanese government lifted its restrictions on individual passengers, spontaneous trips, and daily entry caps last month.

It also launched the National Travel Discount program, which provided subsidies of up to 11,000 yen (about 79 U.S. dollars) per person for a maximum of seven nights.

As COVID-19 and influenza spread simultaneously, the metropolitan government pledged at the meeting to promote the capital's medical capacity to be able to treat up to 127,000 outpatients with fever each day.