Coronavirus lockdown: Lessons from Hokkaido's second wave of infections
In late February, Hokkaido became the first place in Japan to declare a state of emergency due to Covid-19.
Schools were closed, large-scale gatherings cancelled and people "encouraged" to stay at home.
The local government pursued the virus with determination - aggressively tracing and isolating anyone who'd had contact with victims.
The policy worked and by mid-March the number of new cases had fallen back to one or two a day.
On 19 March the state of emergency was lifted, and at the beginning of April, schools re-opened.
But now, just 26 days after the state of emergency was lifted, a new one has had to be imposed.
Hokkaido has acted independently of the central government, which placed Tokyo, Osaka and five other prefectures under a state of emergency last week.
A nationwide state of emergency was declared on Thursday.
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