AIZUWAKAMATSU, Fukushima Prefecture — A massive custom-made "face mask", weighing 77 pounds, was placed on a giant Buddhist goddess statue in Japan to pray for the end of the coronavirus pandemic.
The "mask", made with net fabric and measuring about 13 feet by 17 feet, was carried on ropes by four workers, who took three hours to scale and place the material on the 187-foot statue.
The statue is located in a temple in the Fukushima prefecture.
The temple manager said workers who were discussing ways on how to restore the statue after it was damaged in an earthquake in February, came up with the face mask idea.
He said they plan to keep the mask on the statue until the COVID-19 situation is under control in Japan.