A pandemic atlas: Masks key to keeping Japan's caseload low

The COVID-19 pandemic came by ship to Japan in February — a foreboding harbinger for a world that had not yet come to grips with the disaster to come. The virus raced through a luxury cruise ship called the Diamond Princess after it had returned to its home port near Tokyo. A 14-day quarantine was imposed on the passengers, some of whom complained that they were being held in “ a floating prison.” Of 3,711 people aboard, 712 were infected and 12 died. Though Japanese health officials were accused of botching the handling of the ship, the country has weathered the pandemic well — it has been spared the dangerous surges seen in the U.S. and Europe thus far. By mid-December, Japan had reported 138 cases per 100,000 population.