While healthcare providers are bearing the brunt of the coronavirus pandemic fight, the funeral industry is bracing for action behind the front lines, hoping to retain as much of a human touch as possible as virus fatalities mount.
Japan's death toll has been only slowly creeping up as the nation remains one of the least impacted major economies by COVID-19.
But while the country has so far avoided the extreme scenes seen in some other parts of the world such as unclaimed bodies, shortages of body bags and mass burials, the nation's funeral workers know it is time to adapt, and this can mean an end to traditional farewells from grieving family members.