State of emergency in Tokyo declared, Japan's PM says 'rapid expansion' of Delta variant is major co

[corbe]

State of emergency in Tokyo declared, Japan's PM says 'rapid expansion' of Delta variant is major concern

A state of emergency has been declared in Tokyo just two weeks before the Olympic Games amid surging COVID-19 infections, while the Prime Minister has called for "no spectators".

Bryant Hevesi and Tyrone Clarke
Digital Reporter
2 min read
July 8, 2021 - 9:22PM

Japan's Prime Minister says the "rapid expansion" of the Delta variant is the government's principal concern as he declares a state of emergency in Tokyo just two weeks before the Japanese capital is set to host an Olympic Games.

The declaration, which will last until August 22, comes following a surge in COVID-19 infections in Tokyo.

Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga told reporters on Thursday night a "rapid expansion of the Delta variant is our concern".

"We cannot and we have to avoid another resurgence of a nationwide infection increase starting from Tokyo," Mr Suga said.

<..snip..>

https://www.skynews.com.au/world-news/crowds-set-to-be-banned-at-tokyo-olympics-as-state-of-emergency-is-declared-after-rise-in-covid19-cases/news-story/73a5a1b49c83b5e365dd734ccb36f239

[rustynail]

Gojira!!

[PeteS in CA]

Olympics will ban spectators after Japan declares state of emergency

https://www.cnbc.com/2021/07/08/japan-olympics-committee-bans-spectators-following-state-of-emergency.html

Olympics organizers are banning all spectators from the games this year after Japan declared a state of emergency that’s meant to curb a wave of new Covid-19 infections.

It’s the latest setback for the Summer Olympics that have already been delayed for a year and racked up high costs for postponement. The state of emergency will begin Monday and run through Aug. 22, while the games are scheduled from July 23 to Aug. 8.

Organizers had already banned international spectators from attending and set a cap on domestic crowds at 50% of capacity, or up to 10,000 people.

There’s immense pressure to curb the spread of the virus at the games, protecting both athletes and neighboring regions. More than 11,000 competitors are expected to travel to Japan to compete, along with thousands of officials and staff also set to attend.

So not only are people from outside Japan barred from attending, but now Japanese people are as well. Maybe Japan should have gotten serious about vaccinations before mid April! Japan today is where the US - not really the most aggressive nation about vaccinations - was on March 26th! Good planning, Dude-san!

[corbe]

   Since dr. jill can't go maybe she can devote more time into how to get rid of comelot Harris.

[PeteS in CA]

   Since dr. jill can't go maybe she can devote more time into how to get rid of comelot Harris.

She'll probably be let in because of her More Equal Animals pass.

[Gefn]

Olympics bookmark.