Tokyo deaths up by 1,000 in April from monthly average as virus peaked

Tokyo saw more deaths than usual in April, the month when coronavirus cases in the city peaked.

The hardest-hit city in the country, Tokyo saw 10,107 deaths from all causes in the month, according to data released Thursday by the Metropolitan Government. That’s almost 12 percent higher than the average of the previous four years for which data are available, and 7 percent higher than the same month in 2019.

The city officially reported just over 100 deaths from the coronavirus in April. The mortality data suggests there were around 1,000 more deaths in the month than average, though Tokyo has a growing population that increased by 0.6 percent, or 80,000 people, from last year to surpass 14 million for the first time. Deaths also increased in 2019 from the previous year by 6 percent.