Photo/Illutration Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike holds up a sign indicating the capital is under "a special alert over the spread of infections" on Aug. 7. (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

Tokyo confirmed 339 new COVID-19 cases on Aug. 20, the first time the figure topped 300 in five days, according to metropolitan government officials.

The last time the capital’s daily tally hit the 300 mark was Aug. 15, when 385 infections were reported.

Of the 339 cases, 111 are people in their 20s and 72 are in their 30s. Patients in those age brackets accounted for 54 percent of the total cases.

Fifty new patients are in their 40s and 37 in their 50s.

Twenty-one patients are in their 60s, 19 in their 70s and 10 in their 80s. Three are in their 90s.

Young people in the capital also contracted the novel coronavirus. Ten teenagers and six children under the age of 10 were confirmed positive.

The capital’s daily tally announced by the Tokyo metropolitan government reflects the results of tests conducted to check for infections about three days earlier, according to officials.

A total of 6,004 tests were carried out on Aug. 17 on a preliminary basis, almost matching the highest level to date.

The metropolitan government held a meeting of an expert panel on Aug. 20 to analyze and assess the infection situation and capacity of Tokyo's medical care system.

The number of new cases and the ratio of those with untraceable infection routes remain high and infections are also spreading throughout the capital among elderly people, who are at higher risk of developing serious symptoms, the panel said.

The panel left its highest level on its four-point scale for the status of infections in place, meaning infections are spreading.

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