MITO -- Kairakuen, a garden famous for its plum trees in Mito, the capital of Ibaraki Prefecture, began its annual Mito Plum Festival on Feb. 15. Due to the widespread outbreak of the new coronavirus, hand sanitizer has been made available for use at the ticket gate and many visitors could be seen wearing surgical masks. The masks were made compulsory for the junior high school student volunteers who help sightseers at the event, after the executive committees of both the municipal and Ibaraki Prefectural governments were pressed to introduce infection prevention measures.
On the morning of the festival's opening day, 40 junior high school student volunteers were posted at various spots within the garden, such as the ticket area and near shops in the garden to guide visitors around the festival. On the fronts of their matching jackets, they each wore a sticker with the phrase, "We're wearing these masks to protect our health and the health of those around us," in Japanese, hoping that visitors would understand their need to wear them.
On the weekends of Feb. 15-16 and 22-23, a total of 267 of the city's junior high student volunteers were set to be involved with the festivities. Hand washing and the use of hand sanitizer are being encouraged, and activities originally scheduled to last until 3 p.m. will be cut short and become morning activities. A second-year junior high school student said, "Even though the new coronavirus is spreading rapidly these days, I'm going to work hard and do my very best!"
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