Japan kicks off Obon summer holidays amid COVID-19 pandemic

CNA -- Aug 09

Many Japanese will be taking their summer holiday over the weekend amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tokyo governor Yuriko Koike has urged people not to leave the capital, which continues to contribute the bulk of the country's new cases. Meanwhile, many are suffering from heatstrokes as their bodies have not acclimatised to a shift from a cool rainy season to a sizzling hot summer, which can be mistaken for symptoms of the coronavirus.