Japan's daily COVID-19 cases hit record high of nearly 250,000

TOKYO, Aug. 3 Kyodo - Japan reported 249,830 daily coronavirus cases Wednesday, hitting a record tally as the quickly soaring number renewed concerns over a straining medical system. It was the second day running that the country saw over 200,000 new cases, with the last record reaching 233,000 cases Thursday last week as Japan faces its seventh wave of the pandemic. Tokyo saw 38,940 new cases, while Osaka Prefecture had 24,038 cases. Hyogo Prefecture, which reported 11,201 cases, and Aichi Prefecture, at 17,778, were among 24 areas reporting record infections Wednesday. The country's daily death toll hit 169. Japan had the world's highest number of new coronavirus cases in the week to July 24 with more than 969,000, according to a World Health Organization report. ==Kyodo