A woman walks on the street in Tokyo, Japan, March 22, 2020. (Xinhua/Du Xiaoyi)
Japan's health ministry and local governments said that 2,235 people had been infected with the COVID-19 virus in Japan as of 11:30 a.m. local time on Wednesday, with rising cases in urban areas prompting local authorities to request residents to restrict their movements.
The death toll in Japan from the pneumonia-causing virus currently stands at a total of 77 people, according to the health ministry, with the figure including those from the virus-hit Diamond Princess cruise ship that was quarantined in Yokohama, close to Tokyo.
Of the 2,235 confirmed COVID-19 infections in Japan, the majority are still in Japan's capital city of Tokyo, which has now confirmed 521 cases.
A day earlier, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Tokyo Governor Koike Yuriko held talks during which Koike urged Abe to decide whether to declare a state of emergency to deal with the coronavirus pandemic.
She told a press briefing after the talks that the central government needs to make up its mind about the declaration and issuing a potential city lockdown.
Koike has requested that Tokyo residents work from home and refrain from going outside in the evenings.
Last weekend, she requested those living in the capital to stay home and some of Tokyo's surrounding prefectures urged their residents not to visit the capital in a bid to curb the spread of the virus.
Osaka Prefecture, meanwhile, has currently registered 244 cases and stands behind Tokyo as the region with the most COVID-19 cases.
As a result, governor of Osaka Prefecture Yoshimura Hirofumi requested people to avoid nightclubs and other night spots as a precaution amid the pandemic.
Meanwhile, according to the latest data on Wednesday, Hokkaido recorded 176 COVID-19 cases, Aichi Prefecture has confirmed 178 infections, while Tokyo's neighboring prefecture of Chiba has recorded 171 cases, health ministry and local authorities said.
The health ministry also said there are currently 69 patients considered severely ill and are on ventilators to receive respiratory assistance or have been admitted to intensive care units for medical treatment.
The ministry added that 1,043 people have been discharged from hospitals after their symptoms improved.
