The daily tally of coronavirus infections in Japan has topped 1,000 for the first time in three months. The spike comes as health authorities rush to contain the more transmissible Omicron variant, which is rapidly spreading nationwide.

The southern prefecture of Okinawa is currently a hotspot. Officials reported over 200 cases on Tuesday, the largest tally since September.

Okinawa Governor Tamaki Denny said, "We consider Okinawa to be in its sixth wave of the outbreak." He explained that most cases are among people in the age range 20 to 50 and that many became infected through dining out in groups.

Tamaki said that he's considering asking the central government to declare a quasi-emergency in the prefecture.

Meanwhile, the tally of new cases in Tokyo has been above the 100 mark for two straight days.

Tokyo Governor Koike Yuriko said, "Omicron infections have been confirmed in Tokyo, and we are seeing a rapid increase after the New Year holidays."

Japan's borders are coming under strain too.

A hospital near Narita Airport is dealing with more coronavirus patients. Most of them tested positive upon arrival in the country.

The doctors and nurses say all travelers are assumed to have the Omicron variant until a genome analysis proves otherwise.

A member of the government's expert panel on the pandemic says he expects the variant to continue surging in the weeks ahead.