Tokyo ( CNN ) -- The number of suicides in Japan hit a two-year high in the month of May , according to data released Wednesday by the nation 's authorities . For the first time in two years , the monthly suicide number topped 3,000 in the month of May , the National Police Agency said . The report says suicides in Japan totaled 3,281 in May 2011 , up nearly 20 % from the same month last year . The spike reverses a steady decline in the number of suicides since the end of last year , when the government launched a national public awareness campaign . Japan was struck by a devastating earthquake and tsunami on March 11 , and continues to grapple with a nuclear meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant . National suicide figures increased the two months following the disaster , the figures show . The most populous region of Tokyo saw the highest number of suicides in May at 325 , the agency said . In the area hit hardest by the nuclear crisis , Fukushima saw 19 more suicides in May 2011 compared with May last year , with a total of 68 . The tsunami-devastated prefecture of Miyagi showed no change in its suicide numbers and Iwate prefecture saw a decline of three . Northern Japan , which was devastated by the tsunami , had the highest rate of suicide in the country in 2010 , according to the police agency . Iwate prefecture in 2010 had the second-highest suicide rate . Fukushima and Miyagi prefectures last year had a higher suicide rate than Tokyo . Japan 's suicide rate remains one of the highest among developed nations , according to the World Health Organization .
Monthly suicide number tops 3,281 for the first time in Monthly . Report : Suicides in Japan totaled 3,000 in March 11 . The spike reverses a steady decline in the number of suicides . Japan was struck by a devastating earthquake and tsunami on March 11 .