TOKYO, Dec. 18 (Xinhua) -- Japan on Friday confirmed 2,827 new daily COVID-19 cases, bringing the nation's cumulative total of people infected to 193,755, not including those related to a cruise ship quarantined near Tokyo earlier in the year.
The latest figure follows an all-time high of more than 3,200 infections nationwide reached the previous day, with the country's capital city also reporting a record 822 new coronavirus infections amid heightened concerns about the growing strain on the medical system.
Tokyo on Friday reported 664 new COVID-19 cases, with governor Yuriko Koike telling an emergency press conference the previous evening, "The virus won't heed the calendar," according to public broadcaster NHK.
The Tokyo metropolitan government raised the coronavirus alert for the healthcare system to the highest on its four-tier scale for the first time Thursday, saying that the capital city's medical facilities are "on the brink of crisis."
Masataka Inokuchi, deputy head of the Tokyo Medical Association said, "It is becoming difficult to balance caring for coronavirus patients and regular medical work. We have even exhausted all of our reserve resources," according to reports by NHK.
Meanwhile Koike has urged Tokyoites to stay at home as much as possible in the coming days, despite what would usually be the run-up to New Year festivities and a time of year when many Japanese return home to be with families.
"If you need to go out and get essentials, please limit the time you spend and the people you go with," Koike said.
The numbers of COVID-19 cases are also rising elsewhere across Japan, with the western prefecture of Osaka reporting 309 new cases, while Tokyo's neighboring prefecture of Kanagawa confirmed 295 infections.
Aichi Prefecture saw cases rise by 219, Hokkaido Prefecture confirmed 141 additional infections, while Saitama Prefecture, also close to Tokyo, added 201 new cases, the latest statistics showed.
The national death toll, meanwhile, has now reached a total of 2,839 people. Enditem
