NIPPON



 

The influenza season has started across Japan, the health ministry said Friday.

The number of flu patients reported from about 5,000 regularly monitored medical institutions across the country in the week through Sunday was 1.04 per facility.

The number exceeded 1.0, indicating that the flu season has begun. The start came slightly earlier than the average year.

By prefecture, Okinawa logged the highest figure with 10.64 patients, followed by Shizuoka with 2.09, Chiba with 2.00, Oita with 1.66 and Fukui with 1.62.

Major flu outbreaks did not happen during the COVID-19 pandemic. The nationwide flu outbreak at the end of 2022 was the first in three years. It continued until May this year.