The requested article has expired, and is no longer available. Any related articles, and user comments are shown below.
© KYODOOver 210,000 hotel rooms secured to treat coronavirus patients
TOKYO©2025 GPlusMedia Inc.
The requested article has expired, and is no longer available. Any related articles, and user comments are shown below.
© KYODO
81 Comments
Login to comment
Akie
As long as the govt does the home work, virus is just a tiny thing.
FocusDis
That’s a lot of rooms the government decided to reserve. Are they expecting something?
Akie
FocusDis said "Are they expecting something?"
Sure, they are expecting to save lives.
nonu6976
ok, so 210,000 rooms have not been secured then. Regardless, 210,000 rooms is an awful lot - makes you wonder if they know something we do not.
Akie
nonu6976 said "Regardless, 210,000 rooms is an awful lot - makes you wonder if they know something we do not."
Japanese govt definitely knows that lot of lives were lost because of reckless unpreparedness.
kurisupisu
The population in the Kanto region, with more infections would quickly overwhelm all the hospitals so hotels are the best option.
SauloJpn
Good option, used around the world to have a place to keep mild cases from infecting more people at home. Bonus points if these hotels are close to a fully equipped hospital to treat the patients if or when the symptoms become more serious.
jiji Xx
re: the photo....... seems 'requesting' isn't working!!!!!
Capuchin
Akie: As long as the govt does the home work, virus is just a tiny thing.
165,000 deaths to date and increasing everyday. I wouldn't call that a "tiny thing".
Akie: Japanese govt definitely knows that lot of lives were lost because of reckless unpreparedness.
You're talking about a nation that is about 2 months behind the rest of the world in terms of quaranteening and testing. Who's idea of a solution is to send undersized, dirty, stained masks to everyone. (Well, not quite everyone)
If you're wondering why so many rooms are being rented it'll come as no surprise that APA Hotels are one of the main chains involved in this deal. Owned by more nippon kaigi, ultra conservative, historical revisionist friends of Abe.
More opportunities for financial back scratching. There's a phrase for this in Japanese. "Yakebutori". (焼け太り) Meaning fat from fire or in other words profiting from disaster.
yoshisan88
No social distancing. I can see a few brave people not wearing masks.
Hervé L'Eisa
Wow, ~3000 cases among 14,000,000+ people in Tokyo Met. So that's 0.0212%.
Lorem ipsum
Considering that the government has until now deliberately kept the numbers low, partly due to the olympics, but also because it is grossly incompetent, it's likely there are far more infections that aren't reported yet.
gaijintraveller
Maybe masks are doing more harm than good. What are people thinking? Are they thinking they are safe because they are wearing a mask? Masks offer a little protection but not that much.
Sensible people will avoid crowds even if it means staying at home on a nice sunny day. Maybe the best protection for people is rain, a typhoon, something like that, so that they stay at home.
I hope I am wrong, but I foresee a disaster in the Tokyo area. Today, right now, people are packed in trains going to work. Many will have been in crowds yesterday. Some will have picked up the virus in crowds yesterday. More will pick it up going to work today.
I suppose that is part of the problem. How do you persuade people the virus is dangerous in a crowded shopping street on a beautiful sunny Sunday but not so dangerous in a crowded train on Monday when they are going to work?
William77
Let’s face it,in east asia only South Korea was diligent and transparent enough in numbers and tests in such situation.
To be honest it feels preoccupying to read that all in a sudden over 200.000 new accommodations were created for this virus.
We literally jumped from the “all is all right and we will proceed holding the olympics” about a month ago in “we’re preparing for the worse”
And still,the nationalistic government had so many examples to follow from the rest of the world.
What an absolute lack of responsibility,all too latex
Do the hustle
At the rate the virus is spreading they are gonna need more than 210,000 beds. That photo shows exactly why they are gonna need more. Obviously, social distancing is still a very concept in Japan.
bakakuma
With infections totaling a little over 10,000. Why would you need so many rooms? The math makes no sense. The Japanese Politicians like to subsidize the hotels and their empty rooms. Wink! Wink! Nudge! Nudge!
kwatt
It seems to me that some people die as a result and some will survive as a result. All people may have their own fate. If don't want to die, then better take it very very seriously.
BackpackingNepal
People are either confused or careless about the social distancing and self isolation.If people think it in postive way, there are more advantages for yourself than the other way u think that it is right to do so.
Being self isolated with social distance has made people more socialise with the activities which more people began to realise.
carpslidy
I feel terrible for my parents having to live in a police state
rainyday
Hope they have enough rooms for everyone in that photo. Yikes.
yakyak
Japanese government is rarely prepared for any challenges that face the Japanese people. Remember the butter shortage?
Serrano
I can see a few brave people not wearing masks.
Not brave. Indifferent. If I was forced to be in a crowd like this I would be wearing a mask or at least a bandana.
thepersoniamnow
With all the empty hotel rooms around they are probably the best option.
I think the government is on a massive scare campaign in Japan now.
The only thing that can save them from their own ineptitude is if their strategy somewhat works from now.
Hopefully those new infections really fizzle out and we make some kinda progress.
Japan has some herd immunity for sure too.
Tora
i know it was a lovely day in Tokyo but people going out like that just means that they have accepted they are going to be in this for the long haul. The government remains 100% committed to the herd immunity approach.
Meanwhile, those countries that acted quickly and endured just a month or so of pain are slowly coming out of lock down and will be able to get back to work slowly, albeit with social distancing. Schools and businesses will be able to open. The key is that they will have it somewhat under control.
Japanese actions, meanwhile, will ensure hosptials stay full for a long, long, long time and just more and more places will be needed for quarantine. A few rooms now becomes 200,000, and soon will become a million and so on and so on. The virus will slowly strangle Japan. Most small businesses and schools will have to remain shut.
Also, taking the herd immunity approach may be dangerous if people are not infact conferred immunity, which is looking more and more likely.
gogogo
And doctors, nurses, and equipment?
tamanegi
May 6th and we're all good!
Blacklabel
The virus has most likely already been in Japan for 5 months by now.
Okibum
It's pointless if they aren't testing enough people. To date only 112,000 people have been tested.....
What a shame!
Veronica Apon-Tago
Wow! It looks like Japan is going for their own miseries for letting those people to go out and spread the Coronavirus. Kamikaze desu ne! But this time it is going to be quadrupled and then will hit the highest mark of deaths globally. I wonder if the Japanese government has a reserved fund ready to buy for the huge number coffins required by then! Surely and definitely, if those people, from the above picture, are in NZ they will be, no doubts, ARRESTED by the Police Force at once! I don't realised that Japanese people are such hardheaded and unconcerned people! I used to believe that Japanese people were laws abiding citizens. But with that picture, I just lost my total respect to Japanese people. Make sure you don't fly to NZ, because definitely you are NOT WELCOME!
Bruce Chatwin
That's the route the UK initially took, and it didn't turn out too well...
gaijinpapa
This is such a clever move by Abe.
People will think he’s taking massive action.
And he’s just saved the President of APA Hotels.
kwatt
It is understandable US president Trump really wants all businesses to restart in America very soon when he saw Japan. He may be mistaken about Japan is almost same as usual.
lesenfant
Thats great.. but you cannot fill them if you make it difficult to get tested like it is now.
JJ Jetplane
The government keeps putting out all this false information. Seems their only agenda is controlling the narrative than take action. Testing is still mission impossible. Hospitals are still rejecting people. What they say and what is being done is drastically different.
kwatt
The state of emergency is not a law, a request from the government. That's why they don't follow it if they can't do it.
Ani
I remember back in 2011, the media was criticized for underplaying the seriousness of the Fukushima crisis. One of the points that came up was the tone of voice used by TV commentators which was deemed to be "too calm" and failed to convey the true mood. Now, with the coronavirus crisis, even though the media (at least in the last few days) and the Governors are being more and more aggressive in the tone of their messaging, the people seem to be taking things way too easily. Under current conditions, most of these people in the photograph have no reason to be out and about as if everything is perfectly normal. If they hope to enjoy more sunny days and lovely weather in the near future, they should stay at home or exercise maximum possible physical distancing now. It is rather shameful that people in Japan are ignoring the risks of this virus. I really don't understand what they are thinking... I hope and pray that better sense prevails very very soon. Come on, Japan... don't screw this up...
commanteer
Sounds awful. I sure am glad I live in a relatively free country like Japan, rather than a police state like NZ. Take care.
Jim
The photo sums it up! At times I feel that people in Japan think that a face mask is a hazmat suit and as long as they wear it nothing will happen to them!
kwatt
It seems many Japanese don't take it seriously because their family members, friends, neighbors, someone close to them don't die yet. If someone of family members died, they would start to stay home all the time.
wanderlust
Many of these rooms could have been reserved for the Olympic entourage and spectators, so it will help reduce their losses. Of course the Lords of the Rings would be staying in the 5 star properties, which are probably not on this list.
GW
Over the decades here I have found many Japanese to be rather fatalistic, that there was nothing they could individually so whatever happens happens...…
But with this virus there actually IS a lot we can do as individuals but clearly far too many here haven't figured that out for themselves.....
Here's to hoping none of us has to take up residence in a tiny winy apa hotel room for a few weeks, THAT will REALLY show what a person is made of as they are insanely small!!!
William77
Jim
NZ is the only country in the world that has so far managed to control the spread of the corona virus. This is because of its willingness to have a proper lockdown which is supported by majority of its citizens who value life!
Clearly, you haven’t encountered Japanese cops! Try taking a walk after 8pm around any major stations and the cops will stop you and interrogate you without due cause before demanding you to go back home ( even though there is no law until now stating a curfew ). Is this your definition of Japan being a free country where you don’t break any law yet get into trouble!
During the day, they don’t implement toughness as they want people to go to work but after working hours it’s a whole new ball game in Japan. I guess they want to eat their cake and have it too!
Bjorn Tomention
William77 your post is correct only on one point, and that is the transperency of the government, as in people with sense can see right through it and its leader.
n1k1
if this is true , then good ! a step in the right direction i think. hope for the best expect the worst
kohakuebisu
Japan seems administratively and culturally incapable of getting people who have the disease to self-isolate at home.
Hotels have separate rooms and separate toilets/bathrooms, so are better than makeshift hospitals in conference centers where people who are mildly positive may end up getting a much stronger dose. This is an expensive solution to what shouldn't be a problem, just stay at home and keep away from other family members best you can, but sounds like a solution all the same.
Zeram1
They should convert the Olympic Athletes Village into a severe covid ICU treatment center. Follow the measures taken by the US Army, which has been able to make negative pressure rooms quite quickly.
n1k1
@jim yeah .. New Zealand ... I am not from there so not sure about the "police state" levels but maybe there is something else to this ..generally most of the countries lead by girls are dealing OK (comparatively).. most of the boys aren't that open discussing their fears openly because they are worried they will come across as pussy holes.
When you have a girl at the top it is easier to agree to fear based stricter lock-downs ..
n1k1
One other thing I think the Tokyo goverment should do is to allow parking bikes on pavements and incourage people to use bikes if they really have to show up at work. The only real worry I have isthe heavy dependency on trains here
Jimizo
Sounds about right.
JJ Jetplane
@Jim
I see your point. But to be fair to the people. A lot of them are genuinely worried. It's just that the society and government doesn't give them the chance to be. The mood is set from the top down. The government and companies in Japan are waiting on each other to make the decisions. No one wants to make the call. Not the people, not the government, and not the companies. The one that makes the call will gain most of the blame for any bad that comes along and they are all trying to avoid that blame being placed on them. No one wants to stand up and take the lead.
Bruce Chatwin
With confirmed infections totaling a little over 10,800.
therougou
According to this, 9669 people were tested on 4/14 alone. Number of actual tests done is higher since some are tested multiple times. So yes, it would seem they have the tests available.
https://toyokeizai.net/sp/visual/tko/covid19/en.html
Hard to tell if increased tests are leading to increased confirmed infections, or there are simply a lot more infected people. Increased rate of people testing positive in recent weeks is worrying.
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/news/html/20200418/k10012394711000.html
DaDude
Way to generalize 150 million people by looking at one shopping street in Tokyo.
Bruce Chatwin
How many were tested on 4/13?
How many were tested on 4/15?
0 people were tested on 4/13
3,624 people were tested on 4/15April 14 has the highest number of tests since Toyo Keizai started documenting the testing rate.
It seems that there are multiple problems with testing.
First, the resources to analyze the samples taken are very limited
Second, there aren't the personnel available to conduct the testing
Third, there is far too much red tape
Fourth, there does not appear to be any single agency responsible for coordinating the COVID-19 response
Finally, it's not clear that there are either the testing resources or the testing infrastructure available to efficiently conduct the testing
Japan's sclerotic bureaucracy and political system are hampering the response to this event.
https://toyokeizai.net/sp/visual/tko/covid19/en.html
JCosplay
@FocusDis @nonu6976 either they know something that we don’t, or they’re just being proactive. You know, planning for the worst case scenario, should it come to that. Because better to have too many rooms available than too few.
Either way, this move will surely save lives, or at least free of resources from hospitals and health centers stretched too thin as it is.
therougou
@Bruce Chatwin
Not sure your point. Are you denying they have enough tests? Sunday and Monday reflect the weekend and test counts are low. These seem to be getting picked up on Tuesday (actually Monday's results?) hence the high numbers. But most other days have close to 5,000 tested people. So I stand by my comment that they have enough tests.
Bandit
That's great news compared with just 6000 or so hotel beds reported a week ago. People are working hard in Japan, but thus will not satisfy many Japan bashers on this site.
Bjorn Tomention
Other hotels on the list being used are also Shinagawa Prince and some Tokyu Inns I have heard, but my guess is the Prince would be for the elite and govt types who get the special treatment, doubt it would be you or me getting the higher end service.
smithinjapan
Okay, now that they've got the hotels secured, start doing the testing on a mass scale. People who suspect they have it but cannot get testing are being forced to isolate in hotels and pay all the costs themselves and it is not fair if they do indeed have it (or if they don't, and could otherwise have gone home).
Bruce Chatwin
On only 8 of the 46 days since March 5th were more than 4,000 people tested. (Toyo Keizai started recording the number of people given PCR tests per day in Japan on March 5th.) It was not until April 3rd that more than 4,000 people were tested in a single day. The average (mean) number of people tested per day since March 5th is 1,993.
If the government has the tests, they are not using them.
https://toyokeizai.net/sp/visual/tko/covid19/en.html
kaminokaze
Boasting about 120,000 face masks? although, 210,000 hotel rooms looks little promising.
but reading this made me frightened. Japan is not ready for the wave. well, does anyone ready? I was watching films about wining alien invasions 1o years ago. lol.
therougou
I think it's already been established that Japan isn't testing a lot. The question was whether they have 210,000 tests available and I don't see anything to make me believe they don't.
rimno
If they are expecting 210,000 patients, the number of tests should be at least over 1 mil.
Test of that number will never happen in this country.
They are only ramping up the test CAPACITY to 20,000.
If that's used at full, it will still take a couple of months to test that many.
And as they are saying that they don't have the resources to test that much, I expect it will take more than 3 to 4 months.
Something's fishy.
BobbyKadmon
Naked Scientist, Dr Chris Smith warns more people are testing positive to Covid19 with asymptomatic presentation. He explains that the virus symptoms can take a month to manifest.
He also sites research on sneezing, highlighting the surprising duration virus remains airborne and that two meter social distancing may be insufficient.
ref: https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/saturday/audio/2018743157/chris-smith-virologist-on-latest-covid-19-science
Be safe Japan Love from NewZealand
garypen
You misspelled "morons".
garypen
Correct. Most other countries are converting large spaces into Covid-specific hospitals, such as convention centers, gymnasiums, warehouses, and such.
Alexandre T. Ishii
The asymptomatic patients is scary the most, no appearance by eyes testimony and invisible as another person feelings I can't easily find, like finding a cute girl and she is positive.
Mike James
Olympic cancelled, hotel rooms empty, and then when the 'need' is there, all of a sudden 210,000 hotel rooms were contracted for, when only 3,000 were confirmed (including minor and asymptomatic cases). Bigger Olympic budget, helps out the hotels, and now hospitals can bring in higher-paying cases when choosing which ambulances to allow bring in patients.
TARA TAN KITAOKA
Atleast now, we have a estimated real count but still not enough. less than 1% of tokyo , who is counting ???.
therougou
They have rooms. They can move people out of hospitals. This is a good thing. Why complain?
Ike-in-Tokyo-from-89
Let’s hope all the “guests” will be able to check out.
kazetsukai
The point here is that the government took action in advance, not expecting but considering the possibility and to prevent any delays and logistical preparation. That is the gist of this action and no need to compare with other countries as each country has different needs. The point is, the govenment under whomever is preparing for the unpredictable. It something that should be "appreciated" and not criticized for the timing, or the numbers or the expenses. It will be a wonderful miracle if NONE is used. But the money and the effort would not have been wasted.
WilliB
garypen:
Really? Do you have reference for such convention centers and warehosues?
lostrune2
It's better to be prepared and not have to use them, than not be prepared and then have to use them
NYC converted their cavernous Javits Convention Center into a makeshift hospital
https://nypost.com/2020/03/27/a-look-inside-the-javits-centers-new-coronavirus-hospital/