Coronavirus case confirmed in Hiroshima City cluster, May 2
May 3, 2020
One new coronavirus case was confirmed in Hiroshima City yesterday. More details about individual ¥100,000 cash benefits. Multi-lingual consultation service open during Golden Week. Lonely Golden Week for small farmers.
The number of confirmed cases of coronavirus (as of 11 pm May 2) in Hiroshima Prefecture is 160 and 241 across the 5 prefectures of the Chugoku Region.
| Coronavirus cases in Chugoku Region as of May 2, 2020 | ||||
| Hiroshima | Yamaguchi | Okayama | Shimane | Tottori |
| 160 | 33 | 22 | 23 | 3 |
| +1 | +0 | +0 | +0 | +0 |
| 2 deaths | ||||
1 new case in Hiroshima City cluster in Hiroshima
A female in her 40s who is a resident at the Kenshinen care facility for people with learning disabilities in Saeki-ku in Hiroshima City has tested positive for coronavirus. This brings the total number of coronavirus cases confirmed in Hiroshima City to 79 and 160 across the prefecture.
Source: Chugoku Shinbun
¥100,000 special fixed-sum benefit payment information
Hiroshima City has released a statement in English about the ¥100,000 special fixed-sum benefit payment announced by the national government last month. All residents, regardless of nationality, that are listed in the “Basic Resident Registration System” [住民基本台帳制度] as of April 27, 2020 will qualify for the payment.
Residents can apply either online or by postal mail. To apply online, however, you will need to have a hard plastic My Number Card (not just your number or the paper notice that was sent out when the My Number system was introduced). Those with the card will be able to apply via the Mynya Portal.
In the case of postal applications, the city will be sending details and forms which will include a return envelope. The opening of applications in Hiroshima City (and many other parts of Hiroshima Prefecture) has yet to be announced, but if want to prepare, make sure you have copies of your bank account information (bank book, ATM card, etc) and ID (driver’s license, My Number Card, health insurance card, etc).
Payments will generally be made to the head of household – if there are 4 people in a household, the whole ¥400,000 amount will be paid into the head of household’s account.
As we shared in a previous post, however, it is thought that it is likely that payments to Hiroshima City residents will be delayed until sometime in June.
More details about the application process in English from NHK here.
Golden Week Foreign Language Consultation Service
Hiroshima International Center’s consultation service center is an excellent place to call if you are looking for information or need help connected to the coronavirus pandemic in a foreign language.
The free multi-lingual service will also be offered during the Golden Week holiday (Monday, May 4 – Wednesday, May 6) 10am to 12pm and 1pm to 7pm.
The service is available in English, Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean, Tagalog, Portuguese, Indonesian, Thai, Spanish and Nepalese. It can be reached on 0120-783-806 (no charge).
Small farmers feel the effect as families stay away
People out in the fields planting rice is as much a Golden Week scene as the impressive carp streamers that billow in the wind above them. Many of these people are younger people who make the trip back to their hometown during the long holiday to help their more elderly family members with the planting.
Urged to refrain from going home due to the risk of spreading the coronavirus, this year many small scale farmers have been left to complete the work by themselves. Elderly farming communities will be helping each other out, so it’s likely the rice will be planted. However, it is sad that families and communities will miss out on this annual opportunity to reconnect, both with each other and with agricultural tradition.
Source: Chugoku Shinbun
See all our posts related to the coronavirus pandemic here
